


Evoker

by Ipomia



Series: Twisted Fate [2]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Maxine "Max" Caulfield Still Has Powers, Rachel Amber Lives, Recreational Drug Use, Underage Drinking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:27:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25794352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ipomia/pseuds/Ipomia
Summary: Set after chapter 9 of Pale.With Rachel's spring break starting, Chloe has big plans for the two of them to enjoy their days together to the fullest. However, one thing she never planned on was her ex-best friend showing up unannounced. Just what is it that Max is running from, and why is she so haunted?
Relationships: Maxine "Max" Caulfield & Chloe Price, Rachel Amber & Maxine "Max" Caulfield, Rachel Amber/Maxine "Max" Caulfield/Chloe Price
Series: Twisted Fate [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1871233
Comments: 151
Kudos: 154





	1. Welcome Back

**Author's Note:**

> While it isn't necessary to have read Pale through chapter 9, it is highly recommended.

My head throbbed to the beat of my heart. The light coming through my windows and the sour churning of my stomach told me that I wasn't gonna get any more sleep. "Fuck me," I muttered as I kicked the sheets away and reached over for my ashtray. I silently cursed last-night me as I only found a roach left from my joint. Digging around, I only found one other roach. It was official. I was out of pot.

Setting the ashtray aside, I got up and fished around in my underwear drawer until I found my bowl. I picked apart the roaches and packed what little remained in the bowl and lit it up. As I breathed in my favorite medication, my mind wandered back to last night. My already sour stomach turned. I fucked that up, again.

Rach and I were trying to play a couple of guys for a quick score. I know Rachel managed to lift like two-hundred bucks from her mark and I don't think she even kissed the sucker. My sorry ass got caught up and I ended up having to suck off that douchebag before Rach sprung me. Only got like eighty bucks out of the guy's wallet, too.

After finishing off my bowl and not feeling nearly buzzed enough, I grabbed my phone and headed to the bathroom to suck down some water and brush my teeth again as I weighed the options of burning through my emergency fund to stock up on weed for the week. Today was Rachel's first official day of Spring Break, which meant that we would get to hang every day this week. I was hoping to score enough not to have to worry about my supply, and going out to scrounge up more dough was not something I wanted to waste any time on this week. Maybe Frank would have an easy job lined up? That could work out.

The mess in the mirror belied the fact that I did, in fact, take a shower last night before passing out. Probably didn't help that I just threw on a bra and shorts from the "used" pile and my lack of beanie made my roots look like complete shit. I would have to buy some more dye soon. I briefly thought about a new color, but dismissed it. The blue was so dark I'd have to bleach it to try a different shade. Fuck that. Blue suited me perfectly fine, anyway.

After finishing scrubbing my teeth (and tongue), I picked up the phone, and already today was shit. 09:52 AM, April 1st. April Fool's Day. Rachel always got me good. I don't think I ever got the better of her. Probably because I could never plan that far ahead. And, of course, Rach already texted me that she's got a surprise for me. "Fuck," I muttered as I turned to head downstairs and grab a bite.

I went straight for the kitchen, but I heard movement from the living room. Could Rachel have been here already? How did she never seem to get hungover, no matter how trashed she got? It had to be Rachel. Step-dick didn't get the week off and Joyce already left for work hours ago. "Hey, Rach," I muttered as I grabbed a box of cereal and wondered if my stomach could even handle sugar and milk at this point. Still, my aching head demanded that whatever food I get, it not take any effort at all.

_Just stay down, damn it._

After preparing my half-assed meal, I brought it to the table and sat down, suddenly feeling less hungry as my stomach protested at the very sight of food. Still, I had to try. The first bite managed to stay down. If anything my stomach felt just a bit better. Pushing the cereal under the milk with my spoon, I spoke up, "Thanks again for saving my ass last night. I always seem to fuck it up." I looked up, and Rachel was not sitting on my couch. The spoon slipped from my hand as I found a mop of brown hair and a pattern of freckles forever burned into my memory. "Max?"

She grimaced a half-smile as she held up a little hand and gave me a shy wave. "H-hey, Chloe."

Of course, my body being the finely-tuned machine it was, took the shock of seeing my ex-best friend for the first time in five years with stride and poise. I sprinted to the back door and barely managed to clear the threshold before I started puking. After the first purge, my body kept dry-heaving, trying to push out what wasn't in there. Halfway through, though, I felt a hand on my back, tracing small, comforting circles. I spat out the burning remains of the bile in my mouth before managing to choke out, "What the fuck, Max?"

Max led me back to the kitchen, where I turned on the sink and cupped my hand under the water before bringing it to my mouth. I gave it a good rinse before spitting it out and repeating the ritual while Max fetched me a clean glass. Max held the glass under the faucet until it was half-full before passing it to me. "Not exactly the reaction I was expecting," she said, not even trying to hide her snark. Fuck if she hadn't changed in five years.

A few sips of water and I went back to the table. My stomach wanted nothing more from the bowl, but I couldn't stand to even look over at her. Max fucking Caulfield. My body couldn't decide whether to hug her or yell at her. So yeah, I guess violently yaking was somewhere around the middle ground. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm just hella hungover."

Max made her way over, sitting across from me. "It… I can't tell you how good it is to see you again, Chloe."

I dared to look up, and instantly regretted it. Max started at me with an expression I couldn't quite place. Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears and I swear it was almost like she looked at me as if I were the only thing on Earth.

Stomping down the pleasant feelings I didn't deserve, I took an angry bite from my bowl and shook my head. "Yeah, must be nice," I muttered, my mouth still half-full. "Mad Max makes her triumphant return to find that she really was better off getting the fuck out of Arcadia Bay before it chewed her up and turned her into a piece of shit like everyone else."

"Chloe, the only piece of shit at this table is me," Max said to me, her voice hitching at the end.

Despite myself, I looked again to find her swiping at her flushed cheeks. "Max…"

"I'm so, so sorry!" she interrupted my non-existent train of thought. Tears streamed anew as she shook her head and her gaze fell down to the table. "I know that there's nothing I can ever do to make up for those five years of silence. That mistake will always be my biggest regret, and you have _no_ idea just how much I've managed to fuck everything up."

"Is that why you're here? Because you fucked up and needed to run away from your goddamn problems again?" The words fell out of my head before I could stop them.

Max sniffled, shaking her head. "I… have to accept responsibility for all that I've done." Her hand drifted out toward me but stopped halfway across the table. Her head raised just enough to stare at her hand. "I came here to see you. And if you hate me, or you never want to see me again, that… th-that's okay. I deserve it." Her eyes found mine, a fierce determination hiding behind a wall of tears. "But I will always love you."

I threw the spoon down again as I stormed away. Only making it as far as the counter, I rested my hands on the surface there as I fought against my own body. It threw everything it could at me. My face burned with embarrassment and anger. My gut churned with resentment and hope. Even my damn heart tried to escape my chest as her words echoed in my brain like a mantra. "Fuck, Max. I don't hate you. I hate what you _did_!"

"Not as much as I do," Max replied, and I was glad I couldn't see her face.

"No way!" I spun around, submitting to the rabid rage that burned in me. "You do not get to say that!" I pointed at Max, and she shrunk there in the seat. "My whole life imploded in one day and the one person who could've made it better—could've made my life not a heaping pile of shit—couldn't be bothered to call or even fucking text for _five_ goddamn years!"

I got it all out. All the pain and frustration I had for my once best friend and the way she just cut me out of her life. And I didn't feel one bit better. I just stood there, looking at Max as she hugged herself and cried. Deep in the pit of my stomach, my rage flipped from Max to myself. If anyone, _anyone_ , made Max cry like that, I'd beat them senseless. Shitless. I'd beat them until I felt better, and looking at Max now, I don't think I'd ever feel better. I did that to her.

"Fuck!" I shouted, turning to punch whatever was closest.

"Don't!" I wasn't even able to swing. Max's hands were around my arm, holding me back. "Don't hurt yourself."

I shook her off. I briefly wondered how Max moved so fast, but it was a momentary distraction from my rage. As much as I didn't want to, I stumbled back so I could look at Max. At least she wasn't crying anymore. It made me feel at least a little less like the mega-bitch I was. "Max, I'm sorry. I… I've just wanted to say that to you for… for like forever. I didn't mean any of it."

Max stepped up, her hand falling on my forearm. "You meant it, and I deserved it."

"No," I pulled my arm away and stepped back. Not really knowing why, my hand found the spot where Max's hand rested a moment ago. It wasn't nearly as warm as hers. "I deserved it. I'm glad you got out of this shithole. Really, I am. You did what I never could because you're better than me, Max. You were always better than this two-bit town." Tearing my eyes away from that sad look Max gave me, I looked down at myself. Of course, Max is here dressed up in her hipster best, and I'm standing here in dirty underwear. "But me? Just look at me, Max. I'm worthy of being trapped in this little corner of hell until the day I die. A lot's changed in five years."

Though that sadness remained, a flash of anger crossed Max's eyes as she fixed me with her best, though still far from intimidating, glare. "Don't you _dare_ talk about my best friend that way."

My heart missed a beat. I just couldn't help but smile a bit when she called me her best friend. "Please," I said, scratching my head as I averted my gaze. My face felt hot, too. "I'm sure you've got a ton of way better friends in Seattle."

Max's intense gaze bored into me. She spoke with a conviction I didn't know Max could possess, "Never."

I stepped away and toward the stairs. "I, uh, I should probably get dressed. Make yourself at home."

"Do you mind if I take a shower?" Max asked, giving herself a one-armed hug in that self-conscious way she always did. "I kind of rushed out here to see you."

"Knock yourself out," I said. It finally dawned on me that there was a big piece of luggage sitting behind the couch. "Are you… staying here?"

Max nodded, a ghost of a smile touching her lips. "If that's okay with you. I'm here for the week. Mom's gonna pick me up Sunday morning."

"Fine by me," I said, pushing down the feelings bubbling up at the prospect of spending a whole week with Max. Some part of me screamed that it would be just like old times. Like I could recapture that innocence and happiness I left behind so long ago. The other part of me just said that I would torture myself for a whole week. That part was probably right. I had a hand on the rail as I rounded it and stepped up on the first stair. "And, for what it's worth, welcome back, Max."

After throwing on some decent clothes and my trademark beanie, I spent a good five minutes trying to scrounge up some hidden stash I might've hidden some long time ago and forgotten. It was useless. I really was completely out of pot and I really, really needed a fix right now.

_Seriously, what the fuck? Why the hell is Max back, anyway?_

Giving up, I headed out of my room with the intent to grab my phone from downstairs. As soon as I hit the hallway, I couldn't help but hear the shower. My gaze lingered at the door as my mind trailed to the gutter. When Max left, I hadn't even really discovered myself. Now she was back and still hella cute. I wondered for a moment just how much of her was really covered in freckles.

_No! Bad Chloe!_

I shook my head before hitting the stairs. No way Max wanted to come all the way out here just to get hit on by Arcadia Bay's least eligible lesbian. Which did bring up the question once again of just _why_ Max would come back. And why now?

Heading back downstairs and to the table, I scooped up my phone and brought it to life. Of course, with Rachel and Frank pretty much the only people I talk to anymore, I didn't have any new messages. I immediately opened up a message to Rachel.

[Chloe]  
[yo you're never gonna guess who showed up at my place]

It didn't even take Rachel two seconds to start typing a response.

[Rachel]  
[I'll play along. Who?]

She didn't even try.

_Wait. Could she have set this up? Was this her surprise for me?_

[Chloe]  
[no fucking way. YOU set this shit up? thats gotta be, like the most epic apirl's fools prank of all time!]

[Rachel]  
[Wait, what?]

[Chloe]  
[you're gonna tell me you didn't set this shit up?]

[Rachel]  
[Tell me what's going on, and I may or may not take credit for it.]

[Chloe]  
[max fucking caulfield is at my house right now. she says she's here for the whole week]

[Rachel]  
[Wait, THE Max Caulfield? The girl who left and never so much as texted you?]

[Chloe]  
[that's the one]

[Rachel]  
[Oh, I get it. This is your sad attempt at yet another half-assed April Fool's Day prank.]

[Chloe]  
[i am not fucking around!]

[Rachel]  
[Prove it.]

The urge to throw my phone was, once again, successfully resisted. Okay, Rachel wanted proof. I'd get proof. A pic would be easiest, but with Max in the shower… My mind immediately wandered to just how much Max might hate me if I snuck in and took a picture of her in the shower. Good fucking chance she kind of hated me anyway.

Max's voice rang in my ears, " _I will always love you._ "

Again cursing my brain, I went to plan B. Max always took way too many selfies. And that brown bag sitting by the couch looked like a hella good place to start looking. In a single motion, I launched myself out of the chair and slipped my phone into my back pocket as I headed over to the bag. Sure enough, this was her hipster version of a purse. Her camera was in there, her wallet, her journal, and her phone. She even had a fancy folder-thing in there. Probably her portfolio. I opened that first, but it was all just printouts of old news clippings and internet searches and shit. Nothing I was looking for. Flipping her journal open, I found dozens of Polaroids paper clipped to the pages. I grabbed the first one to catch my eye, and I pulled out my phone to snap a picture. Proof in hand, I threw everything back into the bag before sending the photo to Rachel.

[Rachel]  
[That is obviously a picture of a picture]

[Chloe]  
[yeah, well max is in the shower. that's the closest to the real thing i'm gonna get right now]  
[it's obviously her and she's way older than 13 there. no way i'd have a picture of her like that without her being here]

[Rachel]  
[You're serious? The girl you wouldn't stfu about for 3 years is in your house right now?]

[Chloe]  
[fucking yes, rachel! right upstairs!]

[Rachel]  
[I'll be there in 10. If this is a prank, my revenge will be epic.]

I rolled my eyes as I stowed my phone. So much for me talking through my fucked up feelings. How did telling Rachel that Max was here turn into some kind of fucking challenge? Great, now I just had my own brain to rely on for trying to figure this shit out, and that thing was never any help.

My eyes found their way back over to Max's bag. Of course, there was always a more… cheaty sort of way to figure out just what the hell was going on. I went back to the bag and dug the journal back out.

_Just what secrets do you hold, I wonder?_

Some small voice in the back of my head warned me that this was a betrayal of Max's trust. That little voice was drowned out by the sound of the shower saying, " _You're not gonna get caught._ "

I flipped it open to the most recent page.

_It took me a train, a bus, and a cab, but I made it to Chloe's and the sun's barely even up. Good thing I was able to nap for most of the trip. Somehow, I don't think I had a single nightmare, either. It must be because I'm so stoked to actually see Chloe again. Pretty decent chance my heart's gonna give out when I do see her. I just hope she doesn't hate my worthless ass. She might've forgiven me pretty easily last time, but this time she's got Rachel to lean on. Can't exactly get another opportunity anytime soon to save her life and earn her favor that way either. (At least I hope so!)_

"What the hell?" I scratched my head, trying to remember the last time Max saved my life. She didn't. Unless she's counting during some of our childhood games or some shit. And how the fuck did she know about Rachel? Maybe she wrote this after talking to Joyce? It didn't make any sense. I listened to make sure the water was still running before turning back to the journal.

_I still can't believe my parents let me come out here so easily. Was that Tobanga's doing? I did ask that I be able to get back to Arcadia Bay whenever I was needed. Joyce was super nice when I came in, too. Made me breakfast and everything. All smiles. Bless that woman. I didn't get a chance to meet David, though. I was hoping to go ahead and give him everything on M.J. and the D.R. but I guess I'll have to wait until tonight. In any case, it gives me a good opportunity to do some more snooping. Just a few internet searches turned up so many red flags about him before he went to Blackwell. How did no one see this coming?_

Now that made even less sense. D.R.? M.J.? And just what didn't anyone see coming? Okay, that page was useless, so the obvious thing would be to flip back and read some previous entries. No harm in that, right? Just as I was about to flip back, the sound of running water stopped. "Shit!" I slammed the journal shut and shoved it into Max's bag, before trying to find something to make it look like I wasn't being a total dickhead, messing around in her personal stuff.

I grabbed my half-finished bowl of cereal and took it into the kitchen. I dumped it and threw it in with the rest of the dishes. I actually considered doing the dishes for a minute before I heard the door open. I rushed over to find Rachel coming in. "Rach!" I swung my arms out, but she left me hanging, crossing her arms over her chest.

"So, where is the legendary Missing Max?" she challenged.

I pointed up. "I just heard the water shut off a minute ago, she must be… toweling off…"

My pleasant daydream was interrupted by Rachel backhanding my shoulder. I crashed back to reality to find her scowling at me. "Get your mind out of the gutter."

Shaking my head, I held up my hands. "But that's its home!"

Rachel rolled her eyes at me before heading into the living room. "The luggage is a nice touch." How could she still be skeptical? I watched as she crouched down and opened the oversized suitcase, examining the clothes within. "Okay, and these are definitely not your clothes."

"Check it out," I offered, heading again to the brown bag. I fished out her antique camera, holding it up for Rachel to see. "Only Max would have something like this."

"Wow, does it still work?" Rachel asked. Her hands snatched it away and she danced back. "Strike a pose!" she insisted as she held it up to her face to frame the shot. I just gave her a smirk and flipped off the camera. "Perfect!" The flash went off and Rachel took the Polaroid out, giving it a shake.

Eager to see how it turned out, I headed over and stood next to Rachel. We stared at the black box for a few seconds before it became clear that this was gonna take more patience than either of us had. "Phones work better," I muttered, patting Rachel on the shoulder as I stepped back.

"I don't know," Rachel said as she moved over to the desk to set down the camera and photo. "There is a certain charm to it."

A bit of motion caught my eye, and sure enough, Max was coming down the hall. She was barefoot and her hair was damp, but I'll be damned if her clothes weren't basically the same thing she'd worn before. I couldn't stop my lips from smiling, though. "I think Max here would agree with you," I said, throwing my arm out in Max's direction.

"Who?" Max said as she entered the living room. She turned to find Rachel and I swear her eyes nearly popped out of her head. "R-Rachel!" Physically recoiling away from Rachel, Max actually fell back on her ass. "Rachel Amber!"

Rachel gave her a skeptical sort of half-smile. "I see my reputation precedes me." In the blink of an eye, Rachel was standing over Max, offering out her hand. "And you must be the infamous Max."

"Grand Wallflower of Arcadia Bay," I said. After a second I added, "Formerly."

Max didn't take Rachel's hand right away. Instead, she reached up and tentatively poked at the outstretched hand with a single finger. Rachel, having run out of patience again, grabbed Max's hand and yanked her to her feet. "You weren't kidding," Rachel said as she patted Max's shoulder.

"Max, you okay?" I asked as I stepped closer. Not only did Max look a shade paler than normal, which by the way, was really fucking pale, but Max just seemed to be staring at Rachel with this weird look on her face.

"Y-yeah. Fine," Max muttered. Despite her words, that thousand-yard-stare of hers only seemed to deepen.

Rachel moved away from Max and pushed by me. She grabbed a chair from the table and set it down next to Max. "Here," she said, guiding Max to sit down. Once Max was seated, Rachel swooped back around and crouched down in front of her so that she was eye-level with Max. She spoke, her voice calm and clear. "Listen to the sound of my voice. Can you do that?"

Max gave her a little nod so small, it was almost unnoticeable, especially with the way the rest of her body started to tremble. "What the fuck is going on?" I asked, keeping my voice low. Maybe I didn't get what was going on, but I still got the vibe that yelling would make shit worse.

Rachel fixed me with a glare and motioned for me to back up away from Max. "I'm going to have you breathe with me, okay?"

This time, I wasn't even sure I saw Max nod. But it seemed like Max followed along with Rachel's instructions. It went on for a few minutes before Rachel told Max that she had this and backed away from her. Rachel came over close to me and I leaned in and whispered, "The fuck?"

"She's having a panic attack," Rachel replied. She didn't bother to whisper, but she still kept that sweet calm in her tone.

My mind trailed back to our conversation earlier. She said that she'd royally fucked up. Then my dumb ass rubbed it in. That train of thought derailed as the destination came into view. Someone hurt Max.

"Chloe, keep it together," Rachel said, putting a hand on my arm before gingerly moving it back and forth. "Max doesn't need you going off right now."

Sometimes it was scary how easily she could read me. Though it wasn't like I ever tried to hide my feelings from anyone. Ever. "Max, what happened to you?" I asked, barely able to keep my voice even.

Max slowly shook her head. "I-I think… I'm okay, now," Max said, her voice breathless as she gasped in-between her words. Using the chair for support, Max staggered to her feet. It looked like a small breeze would knock her over. My insides twisted painfully just looking at her like that.

"Max…" I started, but she cut me off with a smile.

"I'm okay now." Max turned to Rachel, though she lowered her eyes so as not to directly look at her. "And thank you, Rachel. That… I really think that helped."

Rachel put on her own dazzling smile. "Just a little something I picked up in California. Had a classmate with frequent panic attacks."

"Panic attack," Max repeated the phrase, her face scrunched up a bit like she was thinking hard about it. "Is that what those episodes are?"

Max's oblivious comment earned her a quizzical look from Rachel. "You didn't know? Was that your first?"

Again giving herself that one-armed hug, Max shook her head. "They've been going on for about a week."

_Fuck this._

I stomped over, putting my hands on Max's shoulders. "Max. What happened? Talk to me."

Max's gaze fell all the way to the floor this time. A little shake of her head is all she gave me. Before I could pry further, Rached jerked me away from Max. "What the fuck, Rachel?" I hissed, barely keeping my simmering rage from exploding.

"She needs space right now. Not an interrogation," Rachel's said. She pointed over at her before whispering, "Look at her."

She stood there, unmoving, her head completely hung so that I couldn't see her face at all. "I swear if somebody fucking hurt her," I growled, clenching my fists painfully tight.

Rachel gave me a look that said, " _You need to drop this right now._ "

I sent her a look back that I really hope said, " _Fuck that._ "

Apparently, it didn't. Or, more likely, Rachel just fucking ignored it, because she danced by Max and picked up her camera there at the desk. "We were playing with your camera right before you came in. I hope you don't mind." She pressed the camera into Max's hands before holding out the photograph she took. "What do you think?"

Reverently holding her camera, she looked up at the photo. She smiled. God, Rachel was so good at that. Moreso because I knew I was smiling, too. "It's so… Chloe," Max said. "It's a really good shot, too. Do you study photography at Blackwell?"

Rachel smiled as she gave her head a little shake. "My studies have me on the _other_ side of the lens." A hop over the back of the couch, and she sprung up before falling next to me and slinging an arm around my shoulders. "How's this pose?"

I felt Rachel nudge me, trying to get me to pose with her. Part of me resented her for putting me on the spot like that, but fuck, Max was already in better spirits. If it would help her feel better, I'd do whatever. So I put an arm around Rachel and gave Max a big smile. The camera flashed, and my smile faded away. How could Rachel be better at cheering up Max than me? What the fuck kind of shitty friend did that make me?


	2. Cigs and Gas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... halfway through doing my final checks on chapter one the option three branch, and I realized the story loses some impact if one doesn't read the first part of chapter 10 of Pale. I apologize, as now the only thing I have available to publish is this. Still, I hope you enjoy! And chapter 10 should be next week. I don't want to imagine a scenario where I can't get that ready by then.

"...And this is our grand escape vehicle," I said as I slapped the hood of my old junker. I couldn't help but give a proud smile as I leaned against the old clunker. "Fixed it up myself."

Max nodded a bit as she smiled. "So we're walking, then?"

I rolled my eyes and mock-laughed at her. "She might be ugly, but she gets the job done."

Rachel nudged Max. "Yeah, we never got stranded out by the woods and had to sleep in the freezing cab all night or anything."

Max giggled as they rounded to the other side. Despite the two of them ganging up on me, I just couldn't help but smile. "Yuk it up," I said, throwing open the door and climbing in. "Without Old Reliable here, we'd all be taking the bus."

I noticed that Rachel let Max in first, giving her the middle seat. Part of me was kind of sad that I wouldn't get to cuddle with Rach, but that was probably a smart move on Rachel's part. It would be hella awkward for Max. I still hadn't told her I'm gay. Probably needed to bring that up sooner or later.

"So, American Rust?" I asked as I turned the engine over. It sputtered and resisted but finally started up.

"Beach first," Rachel insisted. "I already told Frank we were coming."

I wanted to yell at Rachel, but I settled for giving her a glare. This was so unlike her. Rachel was super good at reading people. Superpowers levels of reading people. But she was way off-base thinking Max'd be cool with us buying drugs for our week of debauchery. Of course, Rachel just returned my glare with a little smile and a nod.

_No. It is so not cool._

I seethed the whole ten-minute drive down to the shitty section of the beach. Well, I seethed while scrambling to come up with a plan. By the time we got there, this was it: "Soooo, Max. Me and Rach are gonna go, uh, talk to Frank. You mind hanging back here?"

Max didn't look up at me. "I… uh, yeah." She pulled up her bag and pulled something out before handing it to me.

In my hand were two twenty-dollar bills. "Max, what…?"

Still, she refused to look over at me. I heard her mutter something, but I couldn't make it out.

"She said Xanax," Rachel said as she grabbed her backpack and opened her door.

I just stared at the money in my hand, not able to put two and two together. Next to me was my childhood friend. I was sure I knew her. Everything about her. Five years _was_ a long time. Here I thought we could just pick up and everything might just go back to how it was. Of course, I was wrong. Why wouldn't I be? I guess it was more like we were meeting each other all over again.

"Come on!" Rachel yelled at me, already halfway to Frank's RV.

One last lingering glance at Max, still sitting there with her head hung low, and I got out and started after Rachel. I managed to catch up to her just as she got to the RV. "How the fuck did you do that?" I hissed as we rounded the RV.

"Do what?" she asked me, putting on a face that almost made me believe she didn't know what I was talking about. Almost.

I motioned back toward the truck. "How did you know Max was gonna be okay with this?"

She winked back at me with a sexy smirk. "I didn't. I just figured if she found out what we were up to, she wouldn't narc on her best friend since forever." A pause and her face scrunched up a bit. "Did you tell her what we were doing?"

I shook my head. "No, I thought you did."

"Something I can help you ladies with?"

We both looked up to find Frank stepping out of his RV. Rachel shrugged off her backpack and took Max's forty bucks as well as my eighty and threw them in the pack. "What we agreed on, plus however much Xanax a couple of twenties will get us," Rachel said as she held out the pack to Frank.

"Xanax, huh?" Frank asked, raising an eyebrow. "Not exactly the usual order for you two."

Rachel thumbed over in my direction. "Got a friend in town. She's got her own tastes." To seal the deal, Rachel gave him one of her best smiles. "Hook a girl up?"

Frank gave a little nod as he turned back to the RV. "Gimme 5 minutes." And just like that, he disappeared back into that same shitty RV he's been driving for years.

"So how the fuck did Max know we were scoring?" I muttered, leaning against the side of the RV.

Rachel gave a little shrug. "You know Max better than me."

"Maybe she snooped around in my room when I wasn't looking?" I guessed, closing my eyes and imagining what Max's face might've looked like seeing my room for the first time. My eyes snapped back open as a random "Fuck!" left my lips. "My phone! I left it downstairs."

A little frown touched Rachel's lips as her face scrunched up. "You really think she can unlock it?"

I pulled up my phone to the lock screen. Flashing back, I remembered getting my first phone with a passcode. It was like, two phones ago, but Max and I were thrilled with it. When it came time to come up with a passcode, we agreed that I would use her birthday, and when she got one like it, she'd use mine for hers. "Damn it! She would've gotten it on the first try."

"Seriously?" Rachel raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." I nodded. "She was there when I set my passcode for my first phone."

Rachel frowned again. "And you never changed it, because of course, you didn't."

Before I could retort, the door burst open. Frank threw the backpack at Rachel and she caught it effortlessly. Tumbling the pack over in her hands, she pulled the zipper and fumbled around inside. She turned and nodded at me, letting me know everything was square. "Thanks, Frank," I said as I turned, waving over my shoulder at him.

We walked back to the truck in silence as my thoughts again turned to Max. I could barely see her in there with the glare on the windshield. Things were adding up, and I didn't like the fucking answer. She said fucked up shit happened. She had a panic attack. And now, apparently, she wanted a chemical escape. No way this is just her coping in a big city or her regular aversion to social situations. Something, no someone, fucking hurt her.

By the time I got back into the driver seat, my rage had returned with a vengeance. With Max still sitting there, I just couldn't find any words. I just closed the door and started the engine.

Rachel, of course, never had a problem with words. "Here you go," she said in a chipper tone that grated me. I turned to see her handing Max a baggie with yellow pills in it.

Max accepted it. I think I heard her give a quiet "thanks" as she fished one of the pills out. She brought it to her lips and bit off a piece, swallowing it dry. The rest of the pill went back into the baggie and that went into her bag.

"You're not gonna get stoned just taking a little piece," Rachel said as she stuffed the backpack into the floor at her feet. "Not without a bunch of alcohol, anyway."

"I'm not trying to get stoned," Max said, her voice finally strong enough for Chloe to hear her clearly. "I can't stand that feeling of… I can't stand it."

Rachel's mask slipped a bit as her brow furrowed. Her gorgeous hazel eyes seemed to bore into Max, and I know she was using her superhuman expression reading to gauge Max. "So what, you forgot your Xanax prescription in Seattle?"

"Something like that. It helps with the episodes," Max muttered. Even I knew that was a lie. No way Rachel missed it.

I put the truck in gear and took off. "Old Reliable here needs some fuel," I said, drawing attention away from Max. Couldn't really place the reason why, but I knew Max was uncomfortable. Hell, I was uncomfortable. But I didn't know. I guess somehow I felt better that Max at least wasn't trying to get fucked up. Still, an uneasy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. "I'm gonna stop at the nearest gas station. How are we on smokes?"

I felt Rachel's eyes on me. She totally fucking knew I was changing the subject on purpose. At least she played along, taking the time to dig out her pack and commented something along the lines of having just enough for today. Which wasn't gonna be anywhere near enough today because I knew I had all of four cigarettes in my pack. I wasn't gonna last until noon. Well, with a new weed supply, I might've made it stretch into the afternoon. I'd still be bumming cigarettes off Rachel by the end of the day. "Okay," I finally said after some time, "so we need cigs and gas. I'm thinking we should throw in a bunch of beer and some snacks."

A glance over showed me that Rachel's mischievous smile was back in full force. "Sounds like a perfect plan."

Max, on the other hand, had again lowered her gaze, keeping her face from my eyes. Was she ashamed about the whole Xanax thing? Or was her shame from some other, far more sinister cause? I felt my grip on the wheel tighten as I ground my teeth. Deep down, I knew Rachel was right. Max needed space, and she would open up. That logical part of my brain was shoved aside by my rage and concern. "Max, seriously, what's got you so down?"

Her reply was meek, and her wavering voice and words broke my heart, "Do you think less of me?"

My jaw sawed from one side to the other as my mind tried to come up with an answer that wouldn't fucking destroy her. Somehow the word "no" couldn't find my tongue. First time that shit ever happened. I sighed. "Max, I meant it when I said you were better than me."

Max just hunched over further. "Chloe, don't… You're so smart. You were always smarter than me. And you're brave, and funny, and you're so fucking beautiful—you're better than me. I'm just this plain, stupid, chickenshit of a wannabe photographer. I don't deserve you."

At first, my heart swelled, reaching a peak at the word "beautiful," but when she started getting down on herself, all those good feelings got torn away by a miasma of hate and anger. "Don't you fucking talk about yourself like that!" I snapped at her. Just as I needed to pull off the road, a gas station appeared. I threw the truck into the lot and turned to Max. "Don't…"

My words fell away as I found her face, so red I could barely see her freckles and wet streaks down both her cheeks. "You don't… understand. I'm just a… a complete and total fuckup!"

Before I could even think about it, I had my arm wrapped around her. Words always came so easy when I wanted to cut someone down. But seeing Max like this, I couldn't think of anything other than, "Please, don't cry."

"We want to help you," Rachel chimed in, her own hand falling on Max's knee. "Maybe you could tell us so we could understand."

Max just shook her head as she buried her face in her hands. We stayed together like that for what felt like an hour, though in reality, it was probably only a couple of minutes. Max got her crying under control and slowly leaned back up. She pulled a tissue from her bag to wipe her face and blow her nose.

My rage cooling to a violent simmer, I put the truck in gear before throwing my arm around Max again. I pulled the truck up to the pump and parked it. If I couldn't break something to soothe my anger, at least I could distract myself from it. "We doing this, Rach?"

Rachel grabbed her pack. She dumped the contents into the glove compartment. Two bags of weed, one bigger than the other, an eight ball, and two baggies of pills—probably oxys and maybe some E? "Lets—"

"Don't!" Max was looking up at me. Gone were her tears and her cheeks were dry. "You're going to get caught."

Putting on my best, most confident smirk I said, "Maxipad, you don't even know what we're doing."

"You two are going to try to shoplift, and you're going to get caught. So don't," she said, looking between me and Rachel.

Rachel smiled at her. "We know what we're doing. We've done it plenty of times before." When Rachel opened the door to leave, Max grabbed her wrist.

"Fine… just… Let me do it then," Max said to Rachel. "I won't get caught."

Rachel's smile faded away, replaced by a hard stare. "You're lying."

Max sighed. "Okay, I'll get away with it, you won't."

I watched as Rachel's eyebrow curiously rose and she studied Max's face. Then, she smirked. "Okay, Hot Stuff. Show us how it's done." She tossed her backpack at Max before hopping out.

Scooting over and stumbling out, I saw Max wrap her arm around herself as she breathed a deep breath in and out in that same way she always did when I dragged her along to something she wasn't confident about. This… was gonna end badly. "Max, you have to prove anything," I said. "Just let me and Rach—"

"No," Max cut me off, finally turning back to me to give me a glare. As soon as her eyes met mine, it softened. "Just… give me two minutes, then go in and order your cigarettes, but tell him you forgot your I.D. if he asks. You know, distract him."

"Max…"

"Two minutes!" Max said as she started off toward the station.

I watched her go, donning the backpack before entering the station. "What the fuck was that?" Rachel asked as she hopped back into the cab, leaving the door wide open.

"What're we gonna do? She's gonna get fucking caught!" I said, barely able to take my eyes off the door Max disappeared through.

"She did say she'd get away with it," Rachel replied. She stretched out, letting her legs dangle out the open door as her head rested in my lap. Automatically, my hands found their way to her hair, straightening out the little bits that slipped free.

"You said she lied," I accused, my fingertips tracing from the edge of her ear along the side of her face and finally finding those luscious lips of hers.

She grabbed my hand, pulling it down to kiss my knuckles. "She lied about getting caught, not about getting away with it.".

"How the fuck is she going to get away with it if she gets caught?"

"Now that—" Rachel sat up, though her hand still held mine "—is the real question."

A bit of movement caught my eye, and I looked over to see a police cruiser pulling up on the opposite side of the pump. "Oh, fuck!" I hissed. "We gotta get Max outta there!"

"Leave it to me," Rachel said as she got out again.

In the pit of my stomach, I felt a cold, painful churning. As much as I wanted to be the one to save Max, Rachel was definitely better at handling people than me. "Should we both?" I asked.

Rachel shook her head, sending a pointed look past me. I got the message. It would raise too much suspicion. I cursed myself and my luck. How could it possibly be that a cop would show up at just this moment?

The door closed, and I was alone with my thoughts. A glance over at the cop was out of the question. So I had to occupy myself with what was in the cab. That's when I saw it. Max's bag. She left it when she went in. Inside was her journal. A journal that could tell me everything that was going on with her. Was now really the time? What if they needed me? I tore my attention away from the bag to look out at the gas station. Not like I was any use here.

I opened the bag and fished out the journal. It fell open to the most recent page. There was something new. She must've written it while Rachel and I were making the buy.

_I finally met Rachel Amber. All the stories didn't do her justice, nor did the photos. She's a real force of nature. Of course, the instant I saw her, I had a flashback to the only other time I saw Rachel, complete with the smell. I almost threw up right there. To top it off, that triggered another episode, which is apparently a panic attack according to Rachel. She even knew how to make it feel like I wasn't suffocating. That breathing technique did way better than the Xanax. After that she showed me a picture she took of Chloe. It was spectacular, and she doesn't even study photography! She even had me take a picture of her and Chloe. I can't even begin to describe it. Just how amazing and full of life Rachel is. I'm so glad she was there for Chloe. Chloe deserves that kind of happiness, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let fate take her away from Chloe again._

Just like last time, this entry made no sense. How had Max seen Rachel before? There was some kind of smell and it triggered that panic attack? The most concerning thing was that last bit.

_Take Rachel away?_

I glanced up, and my heart leapt into my throat as I threw the journal back into the bag.

_Max!_

Head downcast just a bit, Max headed my way. The backpack on her shoulders looked way more full than when she left. I couldn't believe it. And, sure enough, by the time Max got to the truck, Rachel was coming out of the store, too.

Stomping down the remnants of my fear and guilt, I put on a smirk. "How'd it go?" I asked as Max opened the door.

"I won't do it again," Max said, glaring at me. She dropped the backpack into the floorboard and I heard the rattle of glass bottles. Then she sent a look over at the cop fueling up his cruiser. "Listen to me next time."

I was about to ask her about how she could've known that cop was gonna show up, but the truck lurched as Rachel got in. "I put in ten bucks for this old clunker," she said before slapping a hand on Max's shoulder. "I guess you were right about not getting caught."

As much as I wanted to stay and talk to Max and Rachel, I also didn't want to give that cop a reason to stick around and give us trouble. So I kicked open my door as I heard Max give Rachel a halfhearted response. Of course, as soon as I started pumping, the cop took off, leaving me by myself. Couldn't hear a damn thing from the cab, either.

After filling up with enough gas for a few days, I got back in the cab and instantly Rachel gushed, "We have got to take this girl shopping!"

"I told you, I'm not doing it again," Max said, her head turning toward Rachel.

Rachel paid her no mind. "Check it out." She held up various snacks. "Chips, doughnuts, jerky…" A smile crept on my lips to see Rachel so excited. And Max may have been blushing, but she was totally smiling, too. "A couple of bottles of water, four forties, a six-pack, and… What the fuck? How!"

Something flew at me, and I barely managed to catch it. It was a pack of cigarettes. My brand, too. I looked past Max to see Rachel holding a pack of her own brand. Her eyes were wide in amazement. "I saw the clerk put these back. How the fuck did you manage to nab these?"

Max shook her head. It was at that point that I realized she had a tissue over her mouth and nose. "You okay?" I asked as I put a hand on Max's shoulder, trying to pull her around to face me.

"Just a nosebleed," Max mumbled through the tissue. "It happens a lot. Headaches, too."

Just like that, all the good vibes vanished again. My jaw clenched tight to keep my tongue from wagging again and making things worse. Max never had headaches or nosebleeds before. Just what the fuck was going on with her? Pushing down those thoughts, I tried to focus on something, anything else. "Let's… let's get the fuck outta here." I put the truck in gear and headed out toward American Rust. "And Max, this—" I pointed over at my pack "—was hella awesome."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Max is already abusing her powers to endear herself to Chloe and Rachel. There is some context as to why Max is keeping everything to herself in a couple of chapters, though those who have read Pale through the 9th chapter should already have a pretty good guess. Next time, the girls get to American Rust and finally get down to hanging out and getting to know each other, including Two Truths and a Lie.


	3. Two Truths and a Lie

"Welcome to American Rust: our home away from hell!" I said as I turned off the engine and rounded the hood to where Rachel was getting out. She handed me the backpack and I slung it over my shoulder.

"It suits you," Max said, grabbing her own bag and scooting out after Rachel.

Rachel got into the glove box, pulling out the bigger bag of weed. "Let's get this party started," she said, a contagious smile on her lips as she held up the bag and gave it a little shake.

"Hell yeah," I agreed. "Come on, Max." Turning to lead the way, I waved over my shoulder at Max. "We need to introduce you to our thieves' lair. You'll fit in just fine." For the moment, my rage and concern took a backseat to the buzzing anticipation of hanging out Max and Rachel. It was a fucking dream come true.

As soon as we got to the hideout, I slung off the backpack. Damned if that fucking thing wasn't heavy as shit. It still blew me away that Max got that thing fully loaded and didn't get caught. I set it down next to Rachel's seat before taking my seat at the back. As soon as Max walked in, I held out my arms to welcome her to our special little lair. Just like our clubhouse as kids, only about a hundred times more awesome. "Whaddaya think?"

Max gave a smile. A genuine smile that showed in her eyes. "It's cozy," she said.

Rachel took her seat, putting the pot on the spool table in front of her. Right to work, she started breaking it up so we could get a joint going. I went for the pack. "What do you want Max?" I asked as I dug through the snacks to get to the beers. I couldn't believe it. She didn't just get beers. She got my fucking brand. And the forties were some of Rachel's favorites, too. I grabbed two bottles, holding one out to Max.

That gorgeous smile fell away. Max held up a hand and shook her head. "Yuck. I'll take a water."

"Seriously?"

"And there should be some cheese puffs in there," Max added.

I put one of the beers back, grabbing a big bottle of water and passing it to Max. Then I found the big bag of cheese puffs and handed that over, too. Finally, I grabbed a forty and set it by Rachel, making sure it didn't get in her workspace. Then, I zipped the bag closed, half-hoping that it might serve as something of a cooler to keep the beers cold.

As I got up, I noticed that Max had made her way around the table to sit on the bench by the elephant carpet, her bag of puffs open next to her as she noshed away. As I walked toward Max, I cracked my beer on the edge of the table. The whole thing shook, causing Rachel to glower at me. I just gave her a sweet smile as I finished sauntering over to Max. The possibility of sitting right next to Max was there. Certainly more than enough room on either side of her with her nestled in the middle of the bench. Instead, I chose the more chaste option, letting the bag of cheesy goodness separate us.

I took a long swallow. "Hey, I, uh… Sorry about this morning. For laying into you like that." Her body twisted to look at me, but I shook my head when she tried to speak. "I had… have no idea what happened, but obviously it was some heavy fucking shit. If you don't wanna talk about it, fine. Don't. But me and Rach here—" I motioned between Rachel and me for emphasis "—we got your back. You ever want to share or need a shoulder to cry on, we're here. And hey, if you wanna wreck shit, we got a bat and we just so happen to be in the middle of a junkyard."

"That's our third bat, by the way," Rachel said. I looked over to find her licking the paper as she finished up the joint. She gave me a sly, sexy wink as her tongue danced back into her mouth. "Try not to break it like Chloe does."

"Fuck you," I spat.

Rachel just smirked. "Maybe later."

I almost dropped my beer. It took everything in me not to yell at her for pulling that shit. We had an unspoken agreement not to flaunt our relationship until I had a chance to explain to Max that I was gay. Was this her way of trying to tell me to hurry the fuck up? No. She was looking at Max when she said that. This was just another one of her fucked up mind games that only she understood. Glaring at her, I held out my beer to point a finger, letting her know that I wasn't gonna put up with that shit.

Of course, Rachel just tucked the joint behind her ear before she swept up the rest of the pot back into the bag. She cracked her beer and leaned back, fixing me with a cool stare. The mischief dancing behind her eyes wasn't lost on me. For good measure, I flipped her off.

I turned back to Max, wondering just how much of our nonverbal communication she got. Sure, people skills weren't her forte, but she was always able to read me like a book. Leaning over, I bumped her shoulder with mine. "Hey, I mean it. You wanna bury whatever shit you got going on, great. I'm perfectly fine with spending the whole day just fucking around. The whole goddamn week."

"Oh, and here I thought you were opposed to the idea of fucking around," Rachel quipped, smirking at me before taking a long drink of her beer.

"Cut the fucking shit, Rachel," I growled at her.

She held up her hands. "What? You keep giving me such low-hanging fruit. Like I can resist." The last of her words were punctuated with another wink that said " _you._ "

"Um, do you two… need some time alone?" Max asked, looking between the two of us.

_Fuck!_

Of course, she was catching on. Rachel just wouldn't fucking stop. "No way, Max," I said, keeping a hard glare on Rachel. "If you want some space, you take it. But no way in hell am I gonna kick you out."

Rachel frowned a bit, picking out the joint from behind her ear. "Yeah, Max," she joined in as she put the joint in her lips and fished out her lighter. "You stick with us, okay?"

A deep inhale, and Rachel extended the joint toward Max. I'd have bet a thousand bucks Max wouldn't take it. I'd have lost a thousand bucks. Max took the joint from Rachel, but she made no effort to bring it to her lips. Instead, Max swung her arm over to me, holding the joint for me to take. Fuck. She may not have had any interest in getting high, but damn if she wasn't hella cool about it. I took the joint and took my own hit. As I held the smoke in my lungs, I got up and switched over to Max's other side so she wouldn't have to keep passing it between Rach and me.

I exhaled as I passed the joint back to Rachel. "This week is gonna be hella awesome," I said, letting my head lean back against the ratty tapestry. Me, Max and Rachel all hanging out together. I literally fantasized about this shit. And here it was, happening in real life. I just couldn't relax though. Another swig from my bottle and I held out my hand, all but demanding the joint back for another hit. Life never let me have any good shit. Any moment, the rug was gonna get yanked out from under me. I could feel it.

As soon as I got the joint back, I took another hit, but I didn't pass it back. After my exhale, I took another hit before giving it back. Maybe I could drown out that feeling of impending doom if I got wrecked enough.

"This is my weed, you know," Rachel grumped at me as she took another hit. She smirked, turning her eyes from me to Max. "Sure you don't want a hit?" Leaning way out, her arm extended, holding out the now half-finished joint toward her. "It could help chill you out."

Max shook her head, and for some reason, I couldn't really place, I felt relieved. "I'm fine."

"You aren't fine," Rachel said before taking another hit. Instead of passing it back to me, she snuffed it out before sticking the half a joint again behind her ear. "But suit yourself." That smirk of hers came back with a vengeance. "So, while we're here getting to know each other, Mysterious Max from Seattle, why don't we play a little game?"

"A game?" Max asked.

"Oh God," I hung my head, slumping down to rest my elbows on my knees.

Rachel's smile widened. "Two truths and a lie."

"Dude, Max cannot do this," I said. I turned up my drink, only to find the bottle woefully empty. "Fuck," I muttered as I set it aside.

"She'll do fine," Rachel insisted. "So, the game is super-easy. One person tells the other two things about them that are true, and one that is a lie. It's up to the other person to figure out which is which." Her arm reached over, patting my knee. "Chloe here will go first, to show you how. You just have to figure out what she says is true and isn't."

A nod and a smile and Max said, "Okay."

At least she seemed like she was on board. She was totally gonna suck at it, though. No way was she gonna get a lie by me. Though, I probably had the same disadvantage. She could read me like a book, after all. I limply clapped my hands together as I changed my sitting position so that I was facing Max. "Okay, you ready?"

"Don't go easy on me," Max said, a confident smile gracing her lips. She was totally sure she'd be able to read me. Probably because she could.

I tossed a few ideas around in my head. Playing this shit for three years taught me a little about what this little game was about. Or at least what Rachel made it do. This was about us learning, or rather re-learning about each other. No bullshit. Major shit only. Shit that needed to be said.

"Okay, first off. I'm gay. A lesbian." The words felt funny on my tongue, and I realized at that point that I'd never actually said them out loud. Sure, it was what I was, but I never actually said it out loud. Everyone just kind of… knew.

Max's head tilted a bit as she glanced away. "Okay," she said. "That—"

"Wait, wait!" I held up my hands. "I have to give you all three, then you guess. Okay?"

"Oh, okay."

Okay, next, a lie. And if Rachel had taught me anything, the best way to lie was to keep it super close to the truth. "I chose to drop out of high school," I said. Technically, I was expelled. Though, after saying it, I couldn't help but wonder which actually sounded worse. "And lastly, as soon as Rach graduates and we get the dough, we're leaving this shithole of a town behind and heading out for L.A."

That last one made Max raise an eyebrow, but not in a quizzical way. More like an " _Are you fucking serious?_ " way. She pointed over at the nearest poster. "Posters and flyers all over your lair about L.A. Gee, I wonder where you two want to head off to?"

I hung my head a bit. My pride stung as I realized how easy that particular one was. "Yeah, that one was a truth," I admitted, scratching at my beanie. My arms crossed over my chest as I challenged her, "What about the other two?"

Her face scrunched up, and I felt victory. That look on her face just screamed, " _I'm not sure._ " Her eyes darted to Rachel, then back to me. "Well, I know you said that Rachel was on Spring Break, not 'we're on Spring Break,' so you're not in school anymore." Then, her face fell away, and her freckles diminished under the red of her face. "And… you have condoms in your wallet. So, you did drop out, and you're bi."

The feeling of victory dampened more than a little given the fact that Max knew what the fuck was in my wallet. I seriously underestimated the power of her snoopiness. "Wrong," I said, deciding to let it go—I knew she'd snoop around anyway. She was Max. I know I had to be grinning like an idiot. "I'm totally gay. And I got expelled, so I didn't 'choose' to drop out."

Max frowned, her flush fading away. "Isn't that cheating?" she asked. "It's practically the same thing."

"But not the same thing!" Rachel piped in. "So, Max, now it's your turn. Do you want to tell Chloe or me two truths and a lie?"

"Chloe," Max replied, not hesitating a single moment.

"All right!" I shouted. Holding a hand toward Rachel, I asked her to hook me up. I practically bounced in my seat as she handed me a beer. Max was totally on board and didn't even fucking blink at me being gay. I didn't even realize how much dread I was carrying about her reaction to that. Snapping off the cap on the bench, I eyed Max and did my best to put on my serious face, but I just knew I couldn't completely will my smile away. "Give me your worst, O, Hider of the Truth."

Max just gave me a lopsided grin. "You know I suck at that."

"You're the worst." I nodded before I took a long drink from my beer, its bitter sweetness going down easily. Holding out the beer toward her, I gave it a little shake for emphasis. "That's why you get a handicap."

This time, Max hung her head. A part of me wondered if she was pondering or if she hoped I might not be able to read her with her face hidden. Finally, she spoke, "Okay. I don't think I have myself figured out just yet, but there is someone I have feelings for. A girl."

"Ooh, la la," I remarked, doing everything to hide my real feelings, which were something more akin to " _Oh my god that's the greatest thing I've ever fucking heard—tell me more!_ " A stray thought hit me, and I looked over to see Rachel studying me. She totally heard that second one.

Max looked up, letting me see that her cheeks still had a bit of color in them. That said, her eyes still dodged mine. "I, uh, hardly a day went by in Seattle when I didn't think about you. I was just… so afraid to call at first, then by the time that I could actually face that fear, I was sure you'd hate me for not saying anything for so long. That… that's why I didn't…"

I reached my free hand out, placing my fingers under her chin to force her to look at me. "Max. I meant it when I said you're forgiven. You don't have to explain."

This time, she gave me a real smile, and I swear my heart turned into a warm puddle of goo for a minute. "Thanks, Chloe. Really."

"Okay, and the third one?" I pushed her along, kind of eager to put that shit behind us once and for all.

She hesitated. Of course, she did. She just totally told two truths. Now it was her turn to tell a lie. She really, really was bad at this, but at least she got the underlying principle. Letting people know real, personal shit. Her eyes darted between me and Rachel, and finally, she blathered out her lie, "I'm a time traveler."

I laughed. I knew she'd fuck that up royally.

"Hey! You cheated!" Rachel said, frowning at Max.

"Give her a break, Rach," I said, slapping a hand on Max's shoulder. "Not her fault she totally sucks at lying. Oh, and for the record: truth, truth, and totally obvious lie."

"But it wasn't—"

Rachel started, but I cut her off with a wave of my hand. "Let it go, Rach. Come on, it's your turn, now." I felt righteous anger in the scowl Rachel gave me, but there wasn't a damn thing that could ruin my good mood right now. When it became apparent that dirty looks weren't about to phase me, Rachel set those soul-seeking eyes on Max and my mood did shift a little. A dread captured me as I realized she was going to take her frustration out on Max. "Go easy on her," I found myself saying.

Rachel's eyes stayed on Max as she leaned in. "Okay, Max." Her arm extended. She held up a pinky. "I set the biggest forest fire in Arcadia Bay's history." Her ring finger. "Chloe's mentioned you pretty much every day for three years." Her middle finger. "I'm Chloe's girlfriend." The whole time, Rachel's mask didn't slip a millimeter. But why would it? Those were all true. She fucking cheated and I just knew she was doing it to fuck with Max somehow.

I looked over to find Max looking… sad. Fuck, she looked devastated. She even held her arm with a hand in that way she did when she was uncomfortable. Her head lowered as she answered Rachel, "You set the fire, and you… you're Chloe's girlfriend. So… that means Chloe never…"

Max really thought that I forgot about her. A searing rage stormed through me. "What the fuck!" I interrupted, shooting to my feet. "You cheated Rachel!" Thrusting my beer in her direction, I looked Max square in the eye. "She didn't tell a lie. Those were all true."

Rachel's hand pushed me away, and I saw her leaning toward Max, her brow all scrunched up as she scrutinized Max. "They were."

"S-sorry!" Max shot to her feet, both hands swiping at her eyes to catch her tears before they stained her cheeks. "Just… give me a minute!" And just like that, she took off. Part of me wanted to chase after her, but I managed to stay put. She wanted to be alone.

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Max. At least Chloe has some alone time with Rachel, now. Though, Chloe obviously isn't very happy with her right now.
> 
> This was a long chapter, so I cut it in half. That way I could update twice. I'll post the second half (now chapter 4) on Sunday.


	4. Seriously Ominous Bullshit

After Max stormed off, that just left me, my never-ending supply of anger, and Rachel. "What the fuck was that?" I nearly shouted, turning to Rachel.

"What the fuck yourself," Rachel replied with an icy coolness as she grabbed her forty and chugged whatever was left before setting the empty can aside. "Your freckled friend from Seattle doesn't make a bit of fucking sense."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" I pressed.

Rachel rolled her eyes. "You are not this stupid. Stop being pissed off and think."

"Think about what?" I threw her words back in her face.

A saw a bit of disappointment in Rachel's pout as she leaned forward and glared at me. "Name every person on this planet that knows I set that fire."

"Just the two of us," I said. "So?"

"And how did Max answer?"

I felt my face scrunch up as I thought back. No way. Max's anguish distracted me so much, I didn't see it. She said that Rachel setting the fire was true. It _didn't_ make a bit of fucking sense. If there was anything that Max should've guessed was a lie, that was it.

"Yeah, now you're getting up to speed," Rachel said, obviously figuring out just where I was in my thoughts by whatever my stupid face was telling her. "So now, ask yourself how she knew our brands of beer _and_ cigarettes and just how the hell she got all that out of there without getting in trouble."

Shrugging, I shook my head. "How the hell am I supposed to know? Maybe she picked up hella awesome ninja skills in Seattle."

Rachel shook her head. "When she said she wouldn't get caught, she lied. And not just once. I asked before _and_ after our little heist. She lied. Both times."

"Obviously she didn't. There was a fucking cop right there. If she got caught, she'd have been in seriously deep shit," I shot back, swinging my arm just a bit too much as my beer sloshed over. I chugged a good third of it to make sure that didn't happen again before wiping my hand and the bottle on my jeans. "Maybe you're just losing your touch."

"Come on, Chloe," Rachel said, her stern look slipping just a bit as those big, hazel eyes bore into mine, almost pleading. "You _know_ something's going on."

I nodded. I held up a hand, letting Rachel know I needed a sec before I doubled back to the door. Taking a moment to survey my stomping grounds, my eyes found their target. Max stood over by that old fast food sign, just staring down at the dirt. My stomach turned, just about sending my beer back up my gullet and I forced my gaze away from her. Fuck did it hurt seeing her all beat up like that, especially considering she wouldn't just tell me what the hell was going on with her.

"Okay, Rach, but this stays between us," I said as I stepped back in. For good measure, I gave her a glare as I pointed at her with my beer. "I mean it." My churning stomach demanded that I not stand up, so I went back to the bench, snatched up the half-eaten bag of cheese puffs, and spread out there. I set the orange snacks on my chest and started noshing as I waited for Rachel to also settle in. Damn this was really riling her up. If I didn't feel like shit, I'd have tried to wind her up more. The more pissed she got the crazier she was between the sheets.

After fuming in her seat for a good ten seconds, she finally snapped at me, "So? Out with it already!"

I sighed as I set the beer on the ground next to me so I could tuck my arm under the back of my head. "She's got a journal, you know. In that little brown bag of hers."

That got a genuine smile out of her. "You little snoop! I knew you had it in you."

"Hey, Max learned from the best," I said, throwing a wink her way. "Still don't know how the fuck she knew what was in my wallet, though."

Rachel practically bounced in her seat. "What did it say?"

I sighed. "I didn't get much. I read a page while she was in the shower, and she added a bit that I got while you guys were hitting the convenience store."

"Oh my God, you are killing me right now! Spill!"

"You realize I'm not drawing this out to fuck with you. I really didn't get much, and what I did get made zero fucking sense," I said, giving her a look that I really hope drove home the fact that I was completely serious. "I read just three entries, and each one made less sense than the last."

"You are absolutely doing this to fuck with me. Out. With. It!"

"Okay, okay!" I snapped back. "The first entry was mostly about her being scared shitless about facing me after five years of silence. That part made sense. But then it mentioned you. By name." I glanced over, and Rachel's impatient scowl had been replaced by a scrunched up face that told me those little gears in her head were running wild. "Yeah, how the fuck did she even know who you were? And it gets weirder. It said something about her not getting a chance to make up for it by saving my life again. It definitely had 'again' in there. But, thing is, she never saved my life before. Not that I can think of."

Rachel leaned back in her chair. "I've been bouncing a few theories in my head, and this is making one stand out."

"Yeah?" I asked, sitting up, and sending half of what was left of the cheese puffs into the floor. "Fuck." I grabbed my beer and took a drink. "Let's hear it."

"Crazy ass stalker," Rachel said. Her face was completely serious, but it wasn't like she couldn't fake that look, either.

"Are you fucking serious?"

Holding up her hands, Rachel gave me a sympathetic look that she probably couldn't fake. Or at least, she wouldn't. Not to me. "Hear me out. She knows what's in your wallet, who I am, our brands of beer, cigs. She knows a shitton she shouldn't. And, I'm gonna give this one to you since you're obviously not going to get it. Her first truth, she was totally talking about you."

_Her first truth?_

It hit me like a train. She said that she liked a girl. Max had the hots for me!

My heart leaped into my throat as an electric warmth spread through me. "Wh-what?"

"It pisses me off just how happy that fucking makes you," Rachel bit back at me, her voice dripping with venom.

"Sh-shit!" I got up, turning my back to her. Like hiding my stupid blushing face from her now would make her unsee whatever idiotic expression I had. "Fuck! Rachel, I..."

Before I could turn around, I felt her arms around me, and her breath on my ear. "I get it. That sexy little thing walks in from Seattle and it's all about you. I'm jealous."

I stumbled as Rachel suddenly shoved me away. "What the fuck?" When I turned, I found Rachel with her thumbnail between her teeth. She only did that when she was worrying over something. Putting my hand on her shoulder, I leaned on her. "Rachel, what's wrong?"

"Crazy stalker doesn't fit." She said though she kept her gaze a thousand-yard stare. "She wasn't jealous. I told her I was your girlfriend. She looked… sad. Not angry. Not jealous. It doesn't make sense. I know she has a thing for you. Why isn't she jealous?"

Looking at Rachel, I saw this was more than just a little curiosity. This whole thing with Max was really bothering her. Fuck if I knew why, though. I mean, I cared because it was Max and I needed to know what was going on with her. But for Rachel, Max was just a story. A person I told her about. "Hey, uh, maybe we can figure it out? I did read two other passages."

"Yeah. Hit me," Rachel said. A twirl of a step and she fell into her chair. The joint came from behind her ear and she lit it right up. "I can't figure this girl out, and it's driving me crazy."

_I can totally see that shit._

"Okay, the second passage she mentioned Joyce and David." I held a hand out, silently asking for a hit, but the look Rachel gave me told me I wasn't getting any until I finished talking. "It mentioned that she had to something to talk to step-shit about, but it was cryptic as fuck. She just used abbreviations. I know one was M.J. 'cause I was totally hoping she was talking about Mary Jane, but I think it's pretty clear that wasn't the case. It also mentioned some shit about nobody noticing before. She wanted to do more snooping and internet searches. But that's it."

Rachel passed me the joint, a little reward for finishing the bit. "That gives us literally nothing to work with. Unless you know a fucking M.J."

With lungs full of smoke, a sudden remembrance hit me. I passed the joint back and I held up a finger, letting Rachel know I had something to say. A few seconds later, I exhaled. "I'm a fucking idiot!" I said.

"And here I thought you had something insightful to add," Rachel said with a roll of her eyes before bringing the joint to her lips.

I flipped her off. "When you were challenging me to prove Max was at my place, I went looking for a photo of her. I knew she'd have one. That's how I came across her journal in the first place. But, before I went through the journal, I found this folder thing. I thought it was her portfolio or some shit, but it was just full of printed off internet searches. Whatever the fuck that M.J. and what-the-fuck-else she was writing about was in there."

Rachel nodded, "What was in there?" she asked before taking another hit and passing the dwindling joint my way.

"Fuck if I know," I said before taking a hit of my own. When I passed it back, she just snubbed out the roach in the ashtray.

"You didn't read any of it?"

I shook my head. "I was looking for pictures of Max. They weren't in there, so I didn't give two shits."

"So basically you suddenly remembered something that literally tells us nothing."

Again, she was just verbally kicking me while I was down. I knew it was fuck all, but now we know where that fuck all was, right? "You fucking want me to tell you the thing she wrote while we were buying from Frank or not?"

"Sorry, Chlo. She's under my skin." Rachel hugged herself, rubbing her hands along her arms. "Making me doubt my ability to read people. She lies when it makes no sense and tells the truth to contradict those lies… Even when she tells the truth it just doesn't make fucking sense! I don't get it!"

"Yeah, well, the last one was even more fucked up. And all about you."

Her eyes rolled up before they closed as Rachel sighed. "Okay, let me have it."

"First and foremost, I gotta know—and do _not_ fuck around—have you ever, ever, maybe in just a passing way, met Max before?"

Rachel leaned in. "Never. I've never been to Seattle and you know I came to this shithole years after she got her ass outta here."

"Yeah, that's what I thought." I reached up, slipping a hand under my beanie to scratch my scalp. "She mentioned her panic attack in that one, including what caused it. It read something like she saw you and had a flashback of the only other time she saw you. And something about a smell and she thought she'd puke." I looked Rachel in the eye. "You're sure she's never seen you before?"

She shook her head. "Never."

An almost silent "Fuck" left my lips as I wondered if any of this shit was gonna make sense. "Okay, well the rest of it was mostly praise about you. She really appreciated you helping her during her panic attack and she totally meant it when she said she liked your picture of me." I sighed. "Then, at the very end, it got super-fucked up. Like, seriously ominous bullshit. She wrote that she wasn't going to let fate take you away from me."

"The fuck is that supposed to mean?" Rachel asked.

I held up my hands. "How should I know? Just telling you what I read."

"I never met her," Rachel said, her head shaking a bit. Her brow was all furrowed up and I could tell she was trying hard as fuck to remember. "Never."

"Speaking of Max, she's been gone a hella long time." I got up, heading for the door.

Rachel sighed as she stood. "I guess if we want answers, we gotta get them from the horse's mouth."

We left our hideout in search of Max. It didn't take long for us to find her, either. She was in the same spot I last saw her. Only this time she was covered in dirt. "Max… you okay?" I asked as I approached the bizarre scene. She knelt in front of what could only be described as a pit that she, apparently, dug out with her bare fucking hands. The brown completely covered her hands and forearms, staining the hoodie she wore. Her jeans weren't any better off, and she even had dirt all over her face.

She looked up at me, and she fucking smiled. Not a nervous smile or a fake one to say " _I'm okay_." No. She grinned ear to ear as she said, "Nothing's here!"

No longer feeling the slightest bit interested in picking at whatever wound caused this fucked up cry for help, I asked, "Why don't we take a break and hit the Two Whales? Grab some lunch, let Max clean up a bit?"

Rachel didn't miss a beat. "Yeah, I could totally get my grub on. Come on, Max."

We helped Max to her feet before heading for the truck. The whole trip was spent by casting sidelong glances between me and Rachel. We silently said the same thing to each other, " _Are you good to drive?_ " When it came to tolerance, Rachel always had me beat. But she also blasted through more booze and at least twice the weed I did. So I got stuck behind the wheel with Max between us. Two beers weren't a lot. I'd driven home way more fucked up before, not that I was proud of it. More importantly, it wasn't just me I was driving. My whole fucking world was packed into the cab of the old rust bucket. One wrong move and… Fuck!

"I… uh, Max, you know how to drive a stick?" I asked, looking over at Max. "I'm kinda feeling the beers."

"Are you cereal?"

Rachel snickered and snorted at the lame-ass phrase, but I just smiled. It was so Max. "I mean, I'm probably good to drive, but if I get pulled over, we are seriously fucked."

"I don't technically have a license. Never needed one," Max said. "I mean, I know it's not that complicated. I've driven an automatic before."

Rachel elbowed Max, a mischievous grin on her face. "Without a license?"

"Extenuating circumstances," Max replied.

"Oh, like to keep your friends from drunk driving?" I joined in, leaning over to bump her with my shoulder. "Come on. Switch me."

With a groan, Max started climbing over me as I scooted over toward Rachel. It wasn't until I was firmly planted in the middle did I realize how much of an opportunity I just missed. A little handful of this or that could have easily been explained away. "Fuckin' idiot," I berated myself as I leaned my head back.

"What?" Max asked, looking back over at me.

"Just kicking myself for being so stupid," I said.

"She does that a lot," Rachel chimed in, nudging me. I didn't have the energy left to flip her off again.

"Okay, so how does this work?" Max asked as she messed around with the equipment.

I walked her through starting the truck and working the clutch to get the gears. It blew me away just how quickly she caught on. I swear she got everything right the first time, every time. Put my sorry ass to shame. Once she'd done a lap around American Rust, we settled on Max taking us to the Two Whales for lunch and cleanup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, in the end, Rachel and Chloe are left with more questions and no answers. Next time, the trio head over to the Two Whales and play another game Rachel comes up with.


	5. What Does She Even Have to be Guilty About?

Max and I went straight to the bathroom once we hit the Two Whales while Rach went to claim our table. After I finished my business, I walked up to the sink next to her. Even with her scrubbing all that time, she didn't even have her arms clean, let alone her face. "You, uh, wanna talk about it?" I asked. Then I added, "Only if you want to. No pressure. Really."

"I just… I knew nothing was there," Max muttered as she continued to splash water over her arms. "I-I can't explain it, but I had to see it. With my own eyes, I had to see that nothing was there."

I didn't have a damn clue what to say to that messed up explanation. Shutting off the water, I flung the excess water into the sink before wiping my hands dry on my jeans. "Max… I…" I shook my head. "Fuck, I screwed up, okay?" I looked over at her, but she kept her attention on trying to get all the dirt out. "I tried to keep in contact harder than you did, sure. But I… I didn't really try at all, did I?"

"What does that say about me?" Max replied, her voice so quiet I barely heard it over the water.

"I'm not… The bad shit that happened to me happened before you left. If I'd been there in Seattle when whatever the fuck this shit is that happened—"

"Shut up!" Max barked, completely disarming me. Again, her words turned quiet, but they held a razor's edge to them, "This… this is all me. All my fault. Don't you _dare_ blame yourself." I heard a sob escape her lips, but she held herself together. "I'll fix it. Everything. And you and Rachel can escape to L.A. like you always dreamed."

"Max…"

"Rachel's waiting for you," she said, and this time I heard the unchecked sobs as she started to fall apart.

It killed me to leave her when she needed me, anyone, to lean on. But she made it clear she wanted to be alone. Resigning, I left the bathroom and went back to our usual booth. "I fucked it up, again," I muttered as I slid in next to Rachel. "Just like I always do."

Her hand rested on my arm, but I refused to look over at her. "What happened?"

"Fuck if I know. I was trying to apologize and she just lit into me." I seethed, staring at the blank table in front of me. "No. She lit into her-fucking-self. What does she even have to be guilty about?"

"That… is a very good question," Rachel replied.

"Well, what do we have here?"

I cringed. This was not the person I wanted to talk to right now. "Hey, Mom," I said, never even looking up.

"Mrs. Madsen," Rachel greeted, her voice having a sultry-sweet tone that Mom had long since learned was completely artificial.

"I have to say I'm more than a little disappointed. I thought for sure you'd be tryin' to patch things up with Max," she said, setting a coffee cup right in front me. "What'll you have, Rachel?"

"Coffee is fine, thanks," Rachel cooed, earning a mug of her own. "And we are trying to get Max to open up. It's… harder than I thought."

I heard a hum of agreement from my mom, and I finally looked up to see her frowning just a bit. "That girl was always so quiet, but I thought for sure Chloe would get her to open up."

"Do you know what's going on with her?" I asked.

She shook her head. "She came in lookin' like a hundred miles of bad road. I knew something was goin' on, but I can't say I got so much as a hint out of her."

"Fuck," I muttered. Even Mom could see there was something off. What could be so bad that Max couldn't even talk about it with me?

"Language," Mom chided. Her hand fell on my shoulder. "But I certainly feel you, Chloe." She then turned to go back to the counter. "I'll bring the pot in a sec."

"I have a really bad idea," Rachel said, her hand landing on my thigh and giving it a squeeze. "You want in?"

I shrugged before leaning over into her. My hand found hers, pulling her fingers between my own. "Better than no idea at all, right?"

"All the charm in the world isn't going to keep Max from hating me if I keep fucking it up," Rachel muttered, her hand squeezing mine.

She rarely showed her vulnerability, let alone spoke it aloud. I nudged her, nuzzling into her neck. "Come on, she likes you. Everyone likes you."

" _You_ like me, Chloe. Most people don't even know me. The real me," Rachel said.

"Shit, you really want her to like you, huh?"

"You're the one that wants the three of us to take over the world together," Rachel replied. "You've been on about it practically since I met you. Now's our chance… if I don't fuck it up."

I sighed, breathing in the scent of her perfume and shampoo. It always changed, but the undertones of weed and smoke never did. "Don't worry about that. I'm sure I'm doing enough fucking up for both of us."

She nudged me with her shoulder. "You always do." As I parted from her, she leaned over and purred in my ear. "And I always love you for it." She gave me a peck on the cheek, which was obscenely chaste for her. I didn't get it until I actually looked away from her to find Max in the booth across from us.

_Shit! When did she get there?_

I was so lost in Rachel, I didn't even notice that Mom had come back and filled our mugs. "Uh, feeling better?" I asked. A dumb question, I knew, but what the hell else was I supposed to say? I grabbed the coffee and gave it a sip.

"I'm fine. A bit of a headache, but I'm pretty used to that by now," she said. Her eyes dodged mine. I didn't need Rachel's superpowers to know she was hiding shit.

Mom came back and took our orders and got Max a coffee, too. I might've been struggling for something to say, but as always, Rachel's silver tongue never failed. "I was thinking of a new game we could play," she said, putting on a big smile for Max.

"I'm not so sure the last one went so well," Max said, her eyes trailing over to me and back to Rachel.

"It's all about getting to know each other better," Rachel said. This time, she gave her head a little shake to corral her hair before tucking it behind her ear with a delicate finger. If I didn't know better, I'd say she was flirting with Max. Fuck. Or trying to make Max feel comfortable so she'd go along with it. "This game, you can always just say that's it and not play anymore, okay?"

Max's shoulders slumped and she nodded. "Okay."

Rachel winked at Max. "Don't worry, you'll totally lose to Chloe and me on this one." Her weight rested on her arms and she leaned over the table. "Okay, this will be a nice, quick game. Super easy, too. Each of us will go around and confess to a crime we've committed. It has to be something you actually did, and it has to be as bad as or _worse_ than the last person's. But you don't have to give any details, just name the crime." Straightening back up, Rachel smiled. "I'll go first with the most innocent of all crimes—loitering." She motioned toward Max. "Max?"

"Um… Jaywalking?"

I spun the half-empty coffee cup in my hands. "What about parking tickets? Worse than jaywalking?"

"Parking tickets are the consequence of the crime, not the crime," Rachel said. "And yes, parking violations trump jaywalking. My next one is smoking pot."

"Shoplifting?"

"Buying pot," I said, smirking over at Rachel.

"Selling pot," she retorted.

Max shuffled a bit. "Does breaking and entering win?"

I looked over and Rachel nodded. "We'll give it to you," I said. "But seriously? Breaking and entering? You?"

"I thought there weren't going to be questions?" Max shot back.

"Okay, okay. Fine." I tossed my long list of crimes around in my head. I never had to actually organize them before based on severity. Fuck, how was I not in jail right now? "Uh, breaking and entering… into the DA's office."

"Yeah, you went into my dad's office. You terrible criminal!" Rachel teased me.

"Okay, fine." I crossed my arms over my chest as I leaned back and glared at Rachel. "Destroying state's evidence."

"Assault and battery," Rachel said.

Max fidgeted. It made me wonder if she was out of worse crimes or if we just made her super uncomfortable with all the shit we actually did. "Does making a bomb count as worse?"

"A fucking bomb?" I said, probably a little too loud. Straightening up, I looked around the diner, and thankfully, no one seemed to have noticed. "Seriously?"

"It was the breaking part of breaking and entering," Max replied.

"Holy shit, you set it off?" Rachel asked.

"Okay, bomb totally fucking wins," I said.

Rachel nudged me. "Yeah, now you get to try to beat Little Miss Unabomber over here."

"Please," I smirked. "Grand larceny."

Rachel rolled her eyes. "You really think you stealing ten grand trumps setting off a bomb?"

"It doesn't?" Max asked.

My smirk grew wider. "Two against one."

"Still haven't forgiven you for letting that money get away," Rachel said. Then, she gave a big, long sigh. "You know, I really didn't think you'd still be in the game long enough for this, but my biggest crime—so far—is arson."

Max didn't miss a beat. "Grand theft auto."

"You stole a car?" I asked.

Max shrugged. "Extenuating circumstances."

"Fuck," I muttered. Scratching at my scalp, I tried to think of something that could beat that. "Uh, accessory to murder?"

"Nope. Bullshit," Rachel shot me down. Turning to me, she tapped a finger on the table. "That is not how that went down."

"How about accessory after the fact? I mean, guy's dead, I know who did it. Never said shit. And I kind of was… you know, there." That gave Rachel pause. Then, she gave a little nod that let me know that one was acceptable.

Rachel held up her hands as she turned back to Max. "I'm already out," she said. "Guess that means Chloe wins Arcadia Bay's biggest bad award unless you think you can top that."

Max's eyes met mine with an expression I couldn't read. Licking her lips, she cast a glance over at Rachel before shrugging. "Murder."

I know it took me a solid twenty seconds for my brain to reboot and for me to close my mouth. "You're lying… right?" Tearing my eyes away from Max, I found Rachel with the same dumbfounded expression I'm sure I had. Okay. Not lying. "M-Max, you're a pacifist!"

Her eyes were downcast, and her expression unreadable. "Yeah. I am."

"Is everythin' okay?" Mom asked as she showed up with our plates.

I turned my eyes to Max. "They will be. I promise."

"Yeah," Rachel joined in. "Whatever it takes."

We waited for Mom to leave, then I leaned in toward Max. "Do you need our help?" I asked. "Like, hide a body, or… Shit! Do you have like, warrants or some shit?"

"What? N-no," Max shook her head. "Nothing like that. It's just… It's a fact I have to live with."

"Max," Rachel reached across the table, putting a hand on top of Max's. "It was just supposed to be a game. I had _no_ idea. I'm sorry."

Max didn't look up at her. "It… needed to be said."

Our conversation from this morning haunted me.

_"You have no idea just how much I've managed to fuck everything up."_

_"Is that why you're here? Because you fucked up and needed to run away from your goddamn problems again?"_

I felt like the world's biggest jackass. Even Step-ass couldn't touch my levels of fuckery. And with all that, the fact that Max actually _killed_ someone, and it still wasn't her biggest regret. Just how does not talking to a piece of shit like me even compare to that?

I had to take a mental step back before I fell into that quicksand trap. Okay, Max was a pacifist, through and through. She would never hurt someone unless it was to protect someone. I refused to accept any other answer. That made her like Frank. Frank killed Damon to protect me and Rachel. I couldn't fault him for that. He had to have some solace in knowing that. Maybe Max was just trying to rationalize her actions. That made way more sense.

"Chloe? You gonna eat?"

I shook my head to see Max staring at me. "Uh, yeah." The rest of the meal was held in uncomfortable silence. After all that, Max insisted on picking up the bill. It just made me feel like more of an asshole.

We piled back in the truck, and I was so painfully sober that I retook my spot behind the wheel. Though, this time, Rachel took the middle seat. I put the key in the ignition, but I didn't turn it. Sighing, I leaned forward to look over at Max. "Hey. What can we do to help you? Seriously, Max. Name it."

Max fidgeted, before hunching over a bit and putting up her Max Armor, crossing a single arm over her chest as she held her arm with her hand. "Let's… can we just go back to American Rust? Hang out? Have fun?"

"Are you sure?" Rachel asked her. She placed a hand on Max's back and slowly traced circles there. "I know I… kind of keep fucking up our games."

Rachel really was trying. I joined in, "Is that what you really want, Max? We can party it up, but don't force yourself just for our sakes."

"Rachel, your games… you're just trying to help fill in the gaps I left between Chloe and me. For us to get to know each other. Really know each other." Max dropped her armor, her hands gripping her knees. "That's what I want. Even if it hurts. I want… I want to trust you enough to tell you everything."

"Okay," I said, nodding as I turned the engine over. "American Rust it is."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be fair, Chloe had a big part in a lot of Max's crimes. 
> 
> Next time, the trio head back to American Rust, and this time Max gets to choose what to do. Turns out, Rachel isn't the only one that makes missteps in trying to get the three of them together.


	6. Just Stumbling Around in the Dark

We piled back into the hideout, Rachel took her seat and pulled out another forty. She held up the drink. "You sure you don't want some, Max? We've got beer, weed, Adderall, oxys, coke. Whatever your vice."

Max shook her head as she trailed over to the bench again. As she sat down, she pulled out her baggie of Xanax. "Pass me a water?" Rachel gave her one of the big bottles and she downed a segment. "In the spirit of being open and honest, I don't want either of you to offer me any drugs. I don't want to get high."

"Is it okay if I ask why?" I asked as I knelt down and grabbed one of my own beers.

The Max Armor came back up after Max set her water down. "It brings back bad memories. Can we leave it at that?"

"Sure, Max," I muttered.

_So much for the open part of "open and honest."_

Cracking my beer open on the table again, I retreated to the seat at the back of the hideout. Sitting down, I let my imagination run wild. Could it be that she had some sort of bad trip and got someone killed? Stealing a glance over at Rachel, I found her watching Max out of the corner of her eye, though I was sure Max was none the wiser. Could Rachel have been wondering the same thing as me?

"Max, I'm sorry," Rachel said. Her fingers toyed with her drink as she stole glances at Max. "Chloe kind of sold me on this mousey girl that she had to drag along to do anything rebellious. Never imagined you'd actually beat either one of us."

"I should've thrown in the towel instead of going with that bullshit accessory after the fact thing," I admitted, letting my head fall back and rest against the cinderblock wall. "It was kind of a stretch, anyway."

"Definitely a stretch," Rachel agreed.

Max's armor came down as her hands kneaded her thighs. "I don't know. Like I said: it needed to be said. Besides—" a grin touched Max's lips "—it just reaffirmed that Chloe's still got my back." Letting out a dark chuckle, she continued, "I confess to murder and you just offer to help hide the body? That… means a lot, Chloe."

Even though I couldn't really see Rachel's smile from my position, I could definitely feel it. "Chloe's hella awesome like that. I'm a pretty good judge of character, and even I underestimated just how loyal and determined she is."

"What am I, a dog?" I asked, throwing the compliments back at her, relying on the playfulness in my tone to let Rachel know I really did appreciate the praise, even though I didn't feel like I deserved it.

"You're a bitch. Get it right, Price," Rachel bit back, a friendly teasing in her voice.

"Queen Bitch to you, Amber," I replied, refusing to back down.

"Nope. That's Victoria's title. You haven't earned it." I laughed at that and so did Max.

God, was it good to hear her laugh again. I held up my hands in surrender. "You're right. No way I'd even want to compete against her for that title."

The laughter died down, and I couldn't help but to feel a little left out. Usually, I was more than content to hang back and just keep my eyes on Rachel, but from the back of the hangout, I could barely see Max. Stepping up, I grabbed my seat and dragged it over by the table and facing Max. "So, what next?" I asked, looking over at Rachel.

With a wry smile, Rachel shook her head. "My games keep blowing up in our faces. I think it's time to let Max choose what to do."

Max leaned over, looking past me. "I know the first thing I want to do."

I looked back over my shoulder and a huge grin found my face as I saw exactly what Max was looking at. Two lines of graffiti stood out. I swelled with pride, realizing that I had started some sort of fucked up tradition with my trusty sharpie. Just as I was about to retrieve the black vengeance from my pocket, Max pulled a sharpie out of her bag. Even more pride flowed through me.

_A girl after my own heart._

Max squeezed by me, taking her black marker to the wall to add her name. As she capped the marker and stowed it, Rachel piped up, "You're officially one of us, Max." She raised her drink in a toast, and I quickly crashed my beer against her's.

"Hell yeah, Max," I agreed. "Practically our leader. After all, you're the one that actually got out of the bay."

Her face flushed at that, and she ran back to her little corner. Fuck was she cute. I thought to mentally kick myself, even before Rachel glared at me, reminding me to keep it in my pants. Wait. Didn't Rachel say that Max had the hots for me? I turned up my beer, though my eyes stayed locked on Max. Things just got fucking complicated. Or, rather they got complicated as shit hours ago and my dumb ass just now caught on.

"So Max," I said to break the silence and put a stop to my thoughts from clawing at me. "What are we gonna do?"

"Maybe, instead of a game, how about a story?" Max asked, picking up her bag of cheese puffs. "How did you two meet? I want to hear the whole story."

I beamed, though I caught a plastic smile on Rachel. It was a helluva story, and for me it was fucking awesome. For her… that's a story that'd pick at a lot of festering wounds. "Rachel? You wanna tell her?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it's fine." Her words belied that tone that screamed that it wasn't. To prove it, she leaned forward and got up. "I'm gonna raid the glovebox," she said, holding out her hand for the key. "Why don't you start?"

I passed her the key, knowing full well that she was about to accelerate her unsober to dangerous levels. But Max didn't need to know that. I plastered on my smile again, this one far less enthusiastic. "So…"

* * *

Rachel ended up taking the story like a champ. And she wasn't so plastered that she fell out, either. It probably helped that Max actually engaged and seemed to really enjoy the story. She kept on getting this weird, melancholic smile on her face that I couldn't place, though. I'd have to ask Rache later what the fuck that was about.

"Rachel, I… I never knew," Max said to her, her voice full of sympathy. "Did you… I mean, you and your dad?"

"I don't talk to James any more than I have to," Rachel said, her voice devoid of her airs and forced pleasantries. Though it was subtle, I also caught a bit of a slur. Her forty went right back to her lips. "Home hasn't been home for years."

"That's why we have American Rust," I said, pulling out beer number five from the pack. They were already warm, but I had a good enough buzz going on that it didn't matter much. It certainly helped that Rachel and I finished off another joint during our story.

Max put on a tiny smile. "Your home away from hell…"

"Exactly!" Rachel said, holding up her forty.

Somehow, Max understood the gesture and clinked her water bottle against it. We were such good influences on her. "So, I guess it's your turn, Caulfield. What're you running from, taking shelter at American Rust?"

Max shrank at that, her gaze falling away. "I guess… I'm a little different from you two. I mean, my home in Seattle was never… bad. It just… wasn't home." She looked up, her eyes fixated on me with such an intense gaze, I looked away.

I took another gulp of warm beer as I fidgeted just a bit. "Yeah?"

"I didn't have something to run away from, so much as there was something I wanted to run toward. Shelter away from home isn't something I need, it's… I just want to be… here. With you."

Her words warmed me far more than the beer ever could've. My fingers traced along my burning face that I prayed wasn't as red as it felt. "Why wait five years, then?"

Max sighed, shaking her head. "I guess… if there was something I'm running from, it's the future. A future I'm terrified of and I don't… I don't want to die with nothing but regrets."

"That's deep," Rachel said, a little belch squeaking out after her sentence. Holding her drugs and liquor may have been one of Rachel's many talents, but she hit her supply pretty hard over the past hour or so. She'd need to sober up if she didn't want to pass out and miss the rest of the day.

Or not.

I sighed as her head lulled to the side and her eyes closed.

"Rachel? Are you okay?" Max asked, her eyes wide as she got up and leaned toward her.

"She'll be okay," I reassured Max as I slipped her half-finished forty from her limp grasp. "She overmedicates sometimes." With the forty safe from spilling all over her, I lightly patted her cheek a couple of times, getting her eyes to flutter open. "Hey, come on. You need to lay down."

"Mmnh, I'm fine," she protested, her voice weak and slurred.

Despite her words, she did little to protest when I pulled her up and let her lean against me. With a little help from Max, I got her back to the truck and let her sprawl out on the seat. Helping her get comfy, I made sure that she was positioned so that if she got sick, it would end up on the passenger side floor. I left the door open, too. Just to make sure she got plenty of fresh air, and just a little hope that she'd be awake enough to puke outside the truck if it came to that.

With Rachel safe in the truck, I walked Max over to a rusting heap and sat on the hood, pounding the spot next to me with my palm. She hopped up and we both watched Rachel in the truck for a minute before I felt like I had to say something. "S-sorry about Rachel," I muttered, my fingers playing with my bracelets as I gave a little shrug. "Those wounds are still kind of raw for her. Her first instinct is always to just… escape."

"Do you know what ever happened to Sera?"

I looked over to find Max staring at me. "Nah." A shake of my head dismissed the notion. "She's not exactly a person to be easily found. Don't get me wrong, I tried, but…"

"Can I help?"

My brow furrowed at that. Of course Max would want to help. She was Max. Doing the right thing wasn't something I did or other people did for me, except Rachel… Max. "We don't… have any leads."

"Did you? At any point?"

I shook my head. "After I saw her there at the mill… she totally vanished." With a sigh, I toyed with some of the hair sticking out of my beanie. "Part of me hopes she just went back to California. The rest… I-I never told Rachel, but I don't think her dad stopped at that. He went so far to keep them apart… I think… I don't think there's anyone to find, anymore."

Max's hand fell on my arm as she leaned toward me. "Does Rachel know?"

"It's not something we talk about, but yeah, I think she suspects the same thing," I said, raising my gaze to settle on my doped up angel, secure in my piece of shit truck sitting in the middle of our sanctuary—a goddamn junkyard long since forgotten. "Arcadia Bay is a fucked up nightmare, Max. You didn't need to come back here."

Though Max's hand never left my arm, I felt another hand on mine. I looked over, finding Max staring back at me with those big, blue eyes. "Yes, Chloe, I did. I don't care if it was hell itself, if that's where you were, I'd go."

The arm she held might as well have been paralyzed, so I used my free one to wipe my eyes. When the fuck did I start cry? Why? "Shit," I muttered, trying to keep myself together as my breaths caught in my throat. "S-sorry, Max."

_How the fuck did I ever deserve a friend like her… like them?_

"I want to tell you everything. You know that, right?" Max asked, her fingers tightening their grip on me, as if she were pressing the words themselves into my hot flesh. "Do you… do you really believe that the truth should always come to light, even if… even if keeping it in the dark is the only way of protecting the people you love?"

"Yeah, Max, I do," I said. There wasn't even a need to think about it. "Truth is freedom. If it hurts someone, at least they know. They can only make the decisions they really want if they aren't being lied to. Otherwise, it's just stumbling around in the goddamn dark, hoping to do the right thing and never really knowing."

I jerked my arm free, realizing that my tears dried as quickly as they spilled. Pointing over at Rachel I continued, "If I didn't tell her about her dad, she'd still trust that two-faced bastard. And what if that asshole put her in danger again? Her life might be shit, but she knows now who he really is—to not put her faith in him."

"Don't… don't put your faith in me," Max mumbled. I looked over to find her head hung so low that I couldn't see her face, and she had her Max Armor up. "I know… I'm betraying you by keeping secrets. But I won't let anyone put you in danger. Least of all me."

_Just what the fuck happened to you, Max?_

"Oh, jeez!"

I looked up at Max's shout to see Rachel, hanging halfway out the truck as she puked her guts out. "Shit!" Even from our spot, I could see that she was getting it all over herself. I was on my feet, headed her way. "Max, why don't you go get our shit from the hideout? Pretty sure Rache's gonna need a shower."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The trio can't even get through telling stories without screwing things up. With Rachel half-passed out, Max and Chloe get a bit of alone time by default. The real question is, what will they do with it?


	7. I Bet She's Cute

I totally fucking called it. I just knew shit was gonna go south sooner rather than later. Now, Rachel was covered in her own sick, that was now also on me after trying to get her cleaned up. Max barely held herself together, not even pretending to put on a brave face. It was like she was super-paranoid Rachel was gonna OD. I kept telling her it was fine. Rachel already got rid of everything in her stomach and it'd been close to an hour since anything went in her, anyway. But on top of all of that, the goddamned icing on the shit cake was that step-fucker was home early.

I turned to Max, her hand squished between Rachel's back and the back of the seat. The gesture wasn't to comfort or support Rachel… my girl was out cold and we weren't moving. Max couldn't relax without feeling that Rachel was still breathing. Well, as much as Max could relax. I don't think I'd seen her like her old self since her unannounced return. We had that in common, I guess.

"We can't take Rachel to her house in this condition, and it looks like the asshole my mom married is here," I said, pointing at his car. "If we're lucky, I can get her up to the shower without step-shit spotting us. If not, it's gonna be a real shitshow."

"Do you want me to try to distract him?" Max offered.

I had to bite my tongue to keep me from asking her to marry me right fucking there. "I can't ask you to do that," I said. My eyes fixated on the door, trying to come up with a plan.

"Why don't we go in, and if he's there, you can introduce us," Max said, her attention still pretty much locked on Rachel. "While I talk to him, you can come back and sneak Rachel in. That could work, right?"

Max had no idea what she was volunteering for, but fuck if it wasn't a sound plan and way better than my half-assed idea of how we might be able to drag Rachel's passed-out ass up and through my bedroom window. "Shit," I muttered. "You sure, Max? This dude is a real asshole, through and through."

"Let's do it," Max said, withdrawing her hand from behind Rachel. Rache groaned and resettled herself, but didn't come to.

Max hesitated a bit getting out the truck, no doubt still worried about Rachel. I reassured her that Rachel would be fine as we headed for the front door. Of course, the second I got through the door, step-fucker shouted from the living room. "That you, Chloe?"

Curses spilled from my lips as I closed the door behind Max. "Yeah," I replied as he showed up in the hallway.

He glared at me before setting his eyes on Max. My blood boiled as he frowned and crossed his arms over his chest.

_This fucker tries shit with Max and I swear…_

"You must be Max," he said. "Joyce mentioned you."

"Uh… yes," Max stammered, her Max Armor coming up.

This shit was already off the goddamn rails. Max couldn't distract his ass with him having us pinned at the front door. Just as I was about to yell at him, he spoke again.

"Joyce said a lot of good things about you," he said. "Might be nice for Chloe to actually have another good influence in her life."

"Joyce told me about you, too," Max replied. She reached over, digging in her bag. "You're head of security at Blackwell, right?"

David nodded. "I am."

"Can I… show you something?" Max pulled out that folder with her internet searches. That folder full of her nightmares that she wouldn't share with me. "In private?"

Just like that, Max led David off to the living room. Her plan worked. Like a motherfucking charm. It might've made me happy if it weren't for the fact that whatever-the-fuck haunted her was in that folder. And she wouldn't show that folder to me, but fucking step-shit got unbridled access?

It ate at me, and the only thing I could do, other than storm in there and start yelling, was get Rachel upstairs and into the shower. Thankfully, she'd already started sobering up. Just a minute ago, I though I would have to shower with her, but she stumbled up the stairs without too much help from me. So I just helped her out of her clothes and corralled her into the shower. She might've been just sitting there in the tub under the shower's spray, but I knew she'd be okay. More important shit needed taking care of.

I went back to the stairs, but I only made it halfway before step-douche stormed out of the house. The car door slammed and I heard him peel out.

_The fuck?_

I rounded the corner and raced to the living room. Max sat there on the couch, face buried in her hands. As I got closer, I heard her muffled sobs. I saw red. "Max!" I put my hand on her shoulder as I knelt down in front of her. "What did that fucker do to you?"

Max shook her head. "He didn't," she muttered, swiping at her face with her hands. She then dug in her bag to get a tissue out. "I'm okay."

Putting my other hand on her free shoulder, I gave her a gentle shake. "You are _not_ okay! I don't give a flying fuck if he's ex-military or whatever. I'll kill that bastard!"

"It's not David!" Max shouted back at me. She raised her head to look up at me, and I saw a sea of pain tainting those perfect, blue eyes. "It's not him…"

"Then who? Who the fuck hurt you?" I yelled at her.

She just stared back at me. I felt her cold, trembling hand on my cheek. "No," she said, her voice soft as she shook her head.

"God fucking dammit, Max!" I spun around, grabbing the first thing my fingers found and launched it against the wall. Whatever the fuck it was, it shattered with a satisfying crash.

Before I could turn back to Max, I stumbled forward, a warmth spreading across my back. I felt a wiry pair of arms wrap around me, and my anger left me. "I'm sorry, Chloe." I felt her breath on my neck as she spoke.

My hands moved to hold onto Max's arms. "Why?" I asked, trying to keep my voice even. "You can tell him, but not me?"

"I won't risk you," Max replied, holding me tighter. "I won't."

My jaw clenched. "Just… how bad is it? This shitstorm you're caught up in."

For a long moment, Max stayed silent. "Think of the worst thing you can imagine," she said.

I focused on Max's breathing as I tried to do as she asked. "You… got mixed up in some kind of gang bullshit and now they're gonna try to kill you and everyone you know?" I guessed.

"It's… much worse than that," Max said. The conviction in her voice sent an icy chill down my spine. "What I told David was just… the tip of the iceberg. The rest I have to handle. On my own."

"Max, I already told you, whatever it is, you can count on me."

"And I already told you, I won't risk you."

Tugging at Max's wrists, I pulled her arms away. I turned around, looking down into her eyes, their beautiful blue tainted with a red haze brought by her tears. "Who says you get to make that choice?" I challenged, keeping her wrists locked in my grip. "Max, if it means keeping you safe, or hell, just making you feel better, you can bet your ass I'll do whatever. Whether you want me to or not."

I felt her pull and struggle against me as she shook her head. "No! Chloe you can't!" She started flailing. Only after she kicked me in the stomach did I let her go. She fell to the floor, curling up in a ball. "I can't watch you die again!"

I had no fucking clue what was going on until I noticed that faraway look on her face. Her labored breathing. She kept on muttering, but I couldn't make out the words. Another panic attack seized her, taking her mind to some dark nightmare I couldn't fathom. And the girl who knew how to fix that shit was half-passed out in the shower upstairs.

Taking a deep breath in and out, I tried to calm myself down. I couldn't help Max if I was flipping my shit, too. This was like her regular freak-outs when we were kids, only dialed the fuck up beyond 11. I just… needed to help her calm down. Feel safe.

Kneeling down next to her, I reached out to pull her in, but the moment my fingers touched her, she flinched away with a shriek. I pulled my hands back. "Max!" I mentally kicked myself for yelling. Stomping down my panic again, I spoke softly, "Max, it's me. Chloe. It's okay. You're okay."

This time, when I touched her, she just kept rocking back and forth a bit, gasping and stammering. I pulled her in, wrapping her in a hug. At first, she tensed up, but as I whispered and shushed her, she started to relax. I didn't know what the hell else to say, so I just kept reassuring her that she was safe and that it would be okay. It took a couple of minutes, but she finally started to calm down. Even when she came back to reality from whatever fucked up nightmare haunted her, she stayed in freak-out mode. But that faraway look on her face finally left as she returned the hug.

I tugged her over to the couch, still holding her as we sat down. "You okay, Max?"

Max didn't say anything, but she gave me a nod. Over the next couple of minutes, I felt Max relax little by little. Finally, she spoke, "Sorry, Chlo. These panic attacks really suck." Her head rolled over, resting on my shoulder.

A greedy little part of me really liked having Max curled up against me like this. I felt like an ass. I put that out of my mind as best I could as I focused on the fucked up situation at hand. "You scared the shit out of me," I muttered. "Caught me pretty good in the gut, too."

"Caught you in the gut?" Max asked.

I pulled up my shirt and felt the smallest bit of disappointment that I didn't have a mark. "You kicked me right here," I pointed.

"Sorry," Max said, her voice quiet.

"Hey, it's probably just as much my fault," I said, giving her a good squeeze and reveling in the feeling of her little frame pressed against me. "I pushed too hard."

Just as I said that Max pushed against me. As much as I hated it, I pulled my arm back and let Max go. "Is Rachel okay?" she asked.

I sighed. I knew what that question meant. Leaning forward, I got to my feet. "I'll go check on her. You gonna be okay on your own?"

Max flopped over, sprawling out on the couch. "I might pass out, too. These episodes are exhausting." Then, she rolled over onto her back and rested her legs on the armrest, leaving her feet dangling out.

"I'll be back in a minute, Mad Max," I said, patting her shoes as I stepped by.

Not wanting to leave Max for too long, I bounded up the stairs two at a time. When I got into the bathroom, I found the water still running, but no signs of Rachel. "Oh, fuck me," I muttered, shutting the water off and praying that she didn't wander into Mom's room. I headed back to my room, and there she was, butt naked and still wet, passed out face-down on my bed. I enjoyed the view for a bit longer than I probably should have.

I threw some underwear on the bed next to her before grabbing an outfit of hers from my closet. "You'll give Max a heart attack if she comes in here and sees your naked ass," I said, reaching out and giving that glorious ass a firm smack. "Get dressed."

"Mmnph," Rachel moaned, somehow sounding sexy even while half-asleep. It sent a thrill through me. And I swear, she must've been able to read me even with her face buried in my mattress and half-passed out, because she followed that up with, "Why don't you get undressed?"

"Because Max is downstairs," I replied, sitting on the edge of the bed as I ran my fingers through her still-wet hair.

"She can get naked, too," Rachel muttered. "I bet she's cute."

Oh, God, if Max was down with that…

I shook my head, banishing my awesome, alluring, sure-to-get-my-ass-in-deep-shit-with-Max thoughts. This time, I roughly patted her shoulder. "Come on. Get dressed and you can pass back out."

She groaned again, more incoherent this time. I rolled my eyes. "Fine! Suit yourself." Chuckling just a bit at my pun, I took the clothes I laid out and threw them on the dresser. Then, I grabbed the blanket and threw the part she wasn't lying on over her. "Sweet dreams, Rach," I whispered, planting a kiss on the back of her head.

I headed back downstairs and back to Max. Of course, when I got back to the living room, I found Max asleep herself. Passed out on the couch. "Fuck me," I muttered, flopping down into the chair. Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes. Truth be told, I was only running on a few hours of sleep myself.

 _A little shuteye might do me some good_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> David is on the case, and with enough foresight from Max to, hopefully, not end up dead six times over. Had Chloe not been so frazzled by the day's events, she might've thought to raid Max's bag. Ah, missed opportunities. 
> 
> Next time, the trio settles in for a quiet evening in the Price household while the parents are away for a classic game of Truth or Dare.


	8. Truth or Dare

I awoke, feeling groggy and, quite frankly, comfortably buzzed. Though I was thirsty and needed to pee. I pushed myself up, only to find myself completely naked as the blanket fell away. "Ugh… what happened?"

Looking around, I found myself in Chloe's bed. But Chloe wasn't with me. What force in this mortal realm could possibly keep Chloe away from a naked me?

A pang of regret and jealousy tore through me as my memories came rushing back. Max. That cute little freckled thing from Seattle. The girl Chloe always considered her best friend, even though she left Chloe in the cold for half a fucking decade.

I found a pile of clothes next to me on Chloe's dresser and quickly got dressed as I tried to piece back together the events leading me here. I didn't even remember coming to Chloe's place. As I continued to tease out what happened, I grabbed my makeup from Chloe's desk and headed for the bathroom.

I took care of my business, brushed my teeth, and did my face and hair. I even found my earrings and phone waiting for me there. Most of what happened came back to me. Max confessed to murder. We decided to go back to the junkyard. Then Max wanted to hear the story of how Chloe and I met. After that, it started to get really fuzzy.

My stomach churned. If I passed out, then that meant that Chloe and Max got to spend hours together. It didn't take a genius to figure out that those two were crazy about each other. Five fucking years apart and they clicked right back together like it had been five minutes.

I headed for the stairs, and already I could hear their voices. Or at least Chloe's. It always carried. She really should've given the stage a fair shake. I got about halfway down before I heard my name. "If you wanna know more about Rachel, why don't you just ask her yourself?"

I sat down, leaning my head against the banister. Max's voice was much harder to make out. "You really have to ask?"

"Yeah. Stupid question."

* * *

Sleeping in a chair was a really bad idea. I don't think I was asleep long, but my neck was killing me. Massaging it with a hand, I mentally kicked myself. "Yeah. Stupid question." I looked over at Max, lamenting the cowardice keeping me in the chair instead of cuddled up next to her on the couch. It was pretty stupid of me to not go after that little pack of hers, too. I chose a shitty nap over going through her journal to glean more clues about whatever the fuck happened to her.

"So, what's Rachel really like, if she's not the person she pretends to be?" Max asked me, pressing me for more information.

"She's been pretty straight with you, Max. She's an amazing actress, on and off the stage. Usually, she'll just morph into this ideal version of herself, but the crazy thing is that it'd be the ideal version of whoever she's hanging with." I chuckled a bit, remembering our first meeting. It never really occurred to me how lucky I was, seeing behind the mask at our very first meeting, though that mask has been slipping on and off ever since. "Old habits die hard, and she's been acting for you, too. But like I said, she's been on the level with you more than anyone I can think of."

A bit of color showed on Max's face as a small smile graced her lips. "So, she really is such an amazing person then, huh?"

"Fuck yeah!" I replied. My jovial mood fell away quickly as I thought more about Rachel. Her demons. "I, uh, I wish she could see it a little more, though." I reached a hand up, rubbing my still-sore neck.

Max's head tilted, a quizzical look on her face. "What do you mean?"

Sighing, I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. "Rachel hates herself, you know." A cynical grin found my lips. "We have that in common, I guess."

"Chloe…" The sadness in Max's voice painfully squeezed my heart.

"So, Rachel," I said, preempting whatever bullshit platitude Max was going to try to feed me. "Her problem is that she sees the worst of her parents in herself. The apple not falling far from the tree and all that bullshit."

"But… I mean it might've been years and years too late, but Sera improved herself. She proved to the world that she was a better person and deserved to meet her daughter," Max replied. "That couldn't have been easy for her."

I sighed. "I said the worst in her parents. Not everyone sees the best in people like you do, Maximus." A shuffled a bit in my seat. "It… it's not like there isn't anything there, either. She's into way harder drugs than the stuff I'll touch. And when she goes on a bender it can get downright scary. And, at the other end, you've seen how well Rache can read people. She's even better at manipulating them. Everyone loves her, but hardly anyone even knows her—because she puts on a mask and just becomes whoever they want her to be. Her dad does the same shit."

"But… Rachel, I mean…" Max rubbed her arm. "I mean… she did scare me back there, but she's not a bad person."

"No, she's fucking amazing," I replied. "She just… can't see it. Yeah, Sera was a junkie. Sera wouldn't deny it herself. Rachel isn't. She's a fucking straight-A student. She might party hard, but she doesn't let the drugs dictate her life. She just uses them to unwind because she fucking needs it."

I sat back, crossing my arms as I looked away from Max. "I might not do the harder stuff like she does, but if either one of us is closer to a junkie, it's me."

"Neither one of you are! None of us are…" Max replied, hugging herself.

"Yeah," I replied, hoping like hell that it sounded even a little convincing. "And then there's all the shit with her dad. He uses lies and manipulation to control people and get everything he wants. Now that… Rachel used to do that shit all time before we met. But she's not stupid, Max. She saw how that kind of approach destroyed her fucking family when all the lies came crashing down. If they'd just been straight with her…" I sucked in a lungful of air, letting it out through my nose. "Rachel's been trying to be more honest. With herself, with me, with you. She really has."

"I… I can't say that I know Rachel that well, but I know that she has a good heart. She deserves better than the hand she's been dealt," Max said. "We all do."

"Fucking preach," I said, leaning forward to get up, but I stopped myself when I saw Rachel in the hall. She held up a finger to her lips before pointing next to the couch. A glance showed me Max's bag. Her journal. Rachel crept down the hall, intending to get a peek into Max's mysterious history. Something I should've done instead of passing out.

"So, uh, enough of that mushy shit," I said. "The day's still young. What do you wanna do while we wait for Rachel to get up?"

Max tensed up, a frown appearing on her face. I wondered for a moment what happened, then she leaned toward the edge of the couch. Just as Rachel started to reach for the bag, Max threw her arm over the armrest, snatched the bag, and put it on. "Do you want to go back to American Rust, or…?"

Wide-eyed, Rachel looked over at me. I just shrugged. No fucking clue how she knew Rachel was about to grab her bag. _Did_ she know? Or did she just grab her bag because I mentioned doing something? But that look in her eye. Disappointment? Anger?

"No offense, but I think I'm done with the hideout for now," Rachel said, seamlessly inserting herself into the conversation as she walked behind my chair so she could drape her arms around me. "Joyce and her pet nazi aren't here, so why don't we just hang out here?"

My eyes flitted back over to Max. "We don't know when step-fucker might get back, though," I said, directly aiming that jab at Max.

"I… don't think he'll be back any time soon," Max replied, her eyes suddenly trying to hide away from mine.

"Perfect!" Rachel said, giving me a squeeze before hopping over and plopping herself down on the couch by Max. "So, then, my fair lady," Rachel said to me with a wink, "Max and I have already had our turns at what we're doing. That just leaves you." Her head tilted oh-so-slightly toward the TV. "And you better not cop out and suggest something stupid like watching a movie."

"Come on! Movies are tits!" I shot back, more to antagonize Rachel than to actually support the notion of vegging out in front of the TV. Not that it would've been a bad way to kill a couple of hours, sandwiched between Max and Rachel on a sofa barely big enough for two… But it wouldn't get us any closer to figuring out what the fuck haunted Max, either.

Rachel threw an arm around Max. "Watch all the movies you like, Price. But if you do, Max and I are going to find something more fun to do."

I consciously stomped down the burning jealously that seized my heart. It was a tit for tat battle, and Rachel always fought dirty. While I could give as good as I got, it wasn't fair to leave Max in the middle. I sighed, waving the white flag. "Whatever, Rache."

She pouted, knowing full well that I'd just put an early end to her little game. "So," she said, withdrawing her arm, "what're we doing next, then?"

"Fuck if I know," I said, leaning my head back despite the pain in my stiff neck. These games of teasing bits of truth out of Max really was Rachel's forte. Not mine. My dumbass brain just latched onto the first half-formed thing that came to it. "Truth or Dare?"

"A bit trite," Rache quipped. "But I'm game." She elbowed Max. "How about it Mysterious Max?"

Max put her armor up again, giving a little, halfhearted shrug. There had to be laws against that kind of weapons-grade adorable. "I don't know," she muttered. Should she ever learn to actually flirt… God help us all.

"So, why don't you go first, Max?" I said, holding my arms out. "Give me your best shot."

But Max turned away, setting those pretty blues instead on Rachel. To her credit, Rache didn't back down. She gave Max a smile as she turned toward her, throwing an arm over the backrest. "Truth," Rachel preempted Max's redundant question. She always picked truth.

Max turned to her, and I couldn't see her face anymore, so I focused on Rache's poker face. That thing was damn near impenetrable. "So…" I watched Max squirm a bit before she found her voice again. "What big secrets are you keeping from Chloe?"

_Holy fuck!_

I was expecting kiddie gloves, not a precision strike right through the fucking heart. Even Rachel's eyes widened in surprise at that. A wry smile then formed on Rachel's lips as she relaxed. "Chloe and I don't keep big secrets from each other. It's kind of our thing." I noticed something off about her expression, but I couldn't place it exactly. Her smirk grew. "You should try it, sometime."

A surge of anger tore through me. Rachel could parry all she wanted. That was fine. But a direct counter like that was way out of line. "Hey, she said before that she was fucking trying!" I shouted over at Rachel.

Rachel's eyes rolled. "She's already admitted to murder. How are some actual details too much to ask for?" When she turned her sight back to Max, her features softened. She sighed. "Shit." Reaching a hand up, she stroked Max's cheek. "Let's… let's just move on, yeah?" Max nodded, sending Rachel's eyes back over to me. "I think I know of just the apology."

"Chloe," she said with a devious grin, "truth or dare?"

She didn't have to ask. Every time this dumb game came up, she picked truth. Me? I only ever chose "Dare."

Her smile only grew. It was just what she expected. But hell, if I could help in her apology to Max, all the better. "I dare you…" Rache's eyes flitted back over to Max. "To make out with Max."

Full. Stop.

The first thing that registered in my brain after it rebooted was that air was good. I should breathe. "I-I-I," I stammered out, staring at a wide-eyed Max as my heart beat a frantic tattoo in my ears. Oh, God, that look on her face. It reminded me of when I dragged her to the Ferris wheel at the carnival. So terrified and so very excited at the same time. "I-I, just, I mean I'm not chickening out or anything. But that's not fair to Max," I said, finally forming words.

Rachel cozied up to Max, putting a hand on her shoulder as she whispered to her, "You don't have any objections, do you, Max?"

Max's eyes never drifted away from mine, but her head shook oh-so-slightly. My heart started to pound in my chest as Rachel pushed Max up from the couch.

_It's a dare. Just a dare._

No matter how much I tried to rationalize it, my heart wouldn't stop pounding in my chest. Max said it was okay. Rachel assured me that Max really did have a thing for me. She wanted this as much as I did, right? Oh, God, I just woke up. My breath probably smelled like shit. When did I last shower?

_Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!_

I found myself standing in front of Max. In just those few seconds I'd started sweating, and now my palms were wet. Still, I had to look confident. Max expected that of me. I was always her rock.

_Just… be cool. Do not dork out in front of Max!_

Reaching a shaky hand out, I cupped one of those soft, freckled cheeks, painted oh-so-slightly pink. I closed the distance, bringing my face inches from hers. My chest felt too tight as I lost myself in those brilliant, blue eyes. It took me a minute of struggling for breath to choke out, "I-it's okay?"

Max cupped my face with her hands as she closed the distance, pressing her lips to mine. I never imagined Max could be so bold. Had she not had such a grip on me, I might've pulled back in sheer surprise. After the initial jolt ebbed away, settling into a burning fire in my chest, her lips started to move before I could even think to reciprocate.

I wanted—needed—more! My hand moved to the back of her neck, slipping my other hand behind her to pull her small frame flush against me. Every inch of my skin burned with desire and ecstasy. Everything melted into a seamless sea of passion. My hands wandered, one sinking lower across her hip to press into her flesh. The other snaked under her shirt, my fingertips drinking the taste of her bare skin.

A familiar sound shattered my three-pronged assault of carnal desire. Suddenly, it wasn't just me and Max alone in the world with our embrace. I peeked an eye open to find Rachel, a huge smile on her face, pulling a picture free from Max's camera. My hand released Max's ass so that I could flip Rache the bird for ruining the moment.

And ruin it she did. Max pulled back, breaking off the kiss as she panted, burying her face in my collarbone. I pulled my hand out from underneath her shirt, settling for a more chaste hug as we stood there. "Rache, you are the worst fucking wingwoman."

Rachel parried, and hit home with her riposte, "And the best girlfriend ever." Sauntering over, she shoved the camera back into Max's bag. The picture, though, she shoved into her pocket.

With a big sigh, Max pushed herself off me. "Apology accepted," she muttered, keeping her head ducked low. Her efforts couldn't hide that bright red face of hers.

It made me wonder how flushed I might've been. We all found our way back to our seats. It felt like a haze of contentedness draped over everything despite my still-pounding heart. I knew Max felt the same way, sitting there fidgeting with her hoodie, face still aglow. And even Rachel, smiling like the cat that got the canary. This feeling… If things could just stay like this forever, everything would be fine.

"So," Rachel spoke up after a couple of minutes of silence, "where were we?"

I sighed. I didn't even wanna play this stupid game anymore. Unless Max picked dare…

_Oh, please, fuck!_

"Truth or dare?" I asked, leaning in toward Max.

Her shoulders rose as she breathed a big breath in. Instead of blurting out her answer, she sighed, deflated as she hunched in on herself. "Truth."

"Fuck!" Max's head snapped up, giving me a wide-eyed stare at my stupid outburst. "S-sorry, I just…"

"She wanted you to pick dare so she could make out with you again," Rachel quipped, cutting right through to the truth.

I covered my face with my hands. If my face wasn't flushed before, it glowed like a cherry now. "Fuck me," I muttered.

"She didn't say 'dare,' Chloe," Rachel said in a sing-song tone.

The sweltering heat in me deepened. Chancing a peek, I found Max every bit as embarrassed as myself. And oh, God, did I want to erase that smug look on Rache's face. She enjoyed this fucking teasing way too much.

"C-can we just get-get back to the game?" Max stammered, hugging her bag to her chest as she stared straight down.

"Uh…" I stupidly said, not even knowing what to ask. Dozens of questions lingered around Max's mysterious past. Rachel wanted me to pry. Hell, I wanted to pry. Something terrible haunted her, and I couldn't protect her from it if I didn't know what the fuck it was. But Max, for whatever fucking reason, didn't want to share that with me. No. She said the reason. Somehow, she thought she was protecting me.

Nodding a bit, I looked over at Max. "Okay, tell the truth. What are you trying to protect me from?"

Max flinched at the question. She raised her arm a moment, but then let it drop. "I…" Sighing, Max cast Rachel a glance before turning her eyes back to me. "Fate."

I blinked a few times, not quite able to turn that word into reason. "I-I'm sorry, fate?"

Max nodded but refused to elaborate. "Yeah. Fate."

I looked over at Rachel, who leaned out as far as she could to study Max's face. Rache's eyes flitted over to me, giving me a small shake of her head. That look… Whatever the fuck cryptic answer that was, Max wasn't lying.

Throwing up my hands, I all but shouted my frustration, "What the fuck is that supposed to even mean?"

Max shrank in on herself, putting up her Max Armor. "You already asked your question, and I told you the truth."

Why? Why the fuck wouldn't she just tell me? I roughly kneaded my knuckles into my thighs. How could she even protect me from "fate?"

"Fuck it! Fine!" I sat back in the chair, seething. Nothing I could do could make Max open up, not without really risking fucking things up between us.

A heavy silence settled in, but Rachel didn't let it stay long. She nudged Max, speaking softly, "Come on, Max. You're up."

"Oh, okay," Max muttered, turning those big blue eyes on me. "Truth or dare?

I sighed, leaning forward to rest my elbows on my thighs. My endorphin high from making out with Max crashed away. Bitterness and confusion were all that was left in my brain. It didn't even matter what I picked. Max wouldn't ask too much either way. I held up a hand toward Max. "Truth."

Max ducked her head a bit before she straightened up. A small smile on her lips told me that was the one that she wanted me to pick. Despite my anger and pettiness, it made me feel at least a little better that something I did made her happy.

"Um, so…" Max started, fidgeting there as she rubbed her arm. "Was-was it good? The kiss?"

My heart clenched in my chest. That brought me right out of the mire. I cast a wary glance over at Rachel. "Max it was… that makeout sesh was hella awesome." I grinned as I sat back up. "You been practicing in Seattle?"

The color returned to her cheeks. "I, um… That was actually just my third kiss."

I could hardly believe she'd barely kissed before. Sure, her wallflower qualities made it totally believable that she'd be inexperienced. But damn if she didn't impress me. Especially with her making the move like that. "Mad skills, Max!" I said, bouncing in my seat. "Who was the lucky number one?"

Max shook her head. "Uh-uh." Thumbing over at Rachel, she said, "I'm not the one you get to ask questions."

Rachel nodded back at Max before turning to me. "Truth, by the way."

"Come on, you're not even gonna try something different?" I said, shooting back at her in a well-honed reflex.

Rachel's face never faltered. "Nope. Truth."

I rolled my eyes, sitting back. No point existed for us to do this shit. Rachel said it herself, we don't keep secrets from each other. What could I even ask her about? Then, my eyes settled on Max.

Licking my lips, I struggled to ask the only real question I could think of. Because it terrified me just what her response might be. "O-okay, Rachel. What do you really think of me and Max?"

"You and Max," Rachel parroted back at me, her grin widening. "I fucking love it."

"Is that sarcasm?" I shot back.

"No. Really." Rachel leaned forward, getting to her feet. "I've been more than clear that I've wanted an open relationship, Chloe. _You're_ the one that's always had hangups about it." Holding out an arm in Max's direction, she kept those hazel eyes locked on me. "I am beyond psyched that someone came along that can open your eyes to it."

A new rage bubbled in my chest. She manipulated me. Again! "Hey! You're not gonna twist this shit around just to get what you fucking want!" I yelled as I shot to my feet.

Rache didn't back down. "But it's not just what I want! Don't you want it, too?"

"You, fucking around with whoever tickles your goddamned fancy while you're off on a bender? Fuck, no, I don't want that!" I shouted.

"Stop it!" Max screamed. Both our heads whipped around. She sat there, her hands balled up in fists on her lap. "Don't… don't do this, because of me."

I tore my eyes back over to Rachel. She gave me a little nod, which I returned. A truce. We could have our fight when Max wasn't around.

Rachel then turned to Max. "So, Max… Truth or—"

"No!" Max shot up from her seat. "We're done. No more games!" she ranted, rounding the couch, only to rest her arms on the backrest. Her head draped down so low, that neither Rache nor I could see her face.

"Come on, Max," Rachel said. "We each got to ask each person. It's only fair we finish at least one round."

"Yeah, Max—"

Max shook her head. "No! It's not fair. Rachel's spent this whole time coming up with just the right things to ask no matter which one I choose!"

Max's words definitely rang true. Rachel's capacity to dominate this game showed in full-force already. On some level, Rachel just couldn't stop herself from twisting people around. But she knew where the line stood. She wouldn't really cross it, would she? "How… how about Rachel promises to go easy on you, eh?" I suggested, sending a look to Rachel so that she would know to go along with it.

Rachel frowned back at me. It made her unhappy to hold back, but even she had to understand that she'd get nothing if Max didn't agree. "Fine. Kiddie gloves. Promise," Rachel said, her hands dropping to her sides. "Truth or dare?"

Max took a deep breath. Then, she nodded. "Truth."

Crossing her arms over her chest, Rachel tilted her head just a bit. "Okay. I was going to ask for more, but I'll just settle for a name. Nothing else." Rachel shot me a glance before turning back to Max. "Who did you kill?"

"No! That's not fair!" Max's head shot up, revealing red eyes and tear-stained cheeks. "It's-it's not…"

My insides twisted even just seeing Max like that. But really, it wasn't like Rachel asked for much. "C-come on, Max. It's just a damned name." A name we could research to find out a helluva lot more about her mysterious past, but just a name nonetheless.

Max hung her head again as she fished tissues from her bag. "No."

"You told us what you did," Rachel softly said. "I'm not asking you to tell us the how or why. Just, who?"

The question hung in the air as Max stood there, her hands gripping tightly into themselves. "Just… the first name?"

Rachel's eyes rolled up as she sighed before she covered her face with a hand. The universal face of " _I fucked that up._ " Cursing under her breath, she shook it off, replacing her mask with an unwavering smile. "Fine. You got me there. Just the first name."

"O-okay," Max muttered, leaning forward to put her weight on the back of the couch. Still, she kept her head hung so low even Rachel couldn't get a glimpse. "Her name… was Chloe."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They kissed! It only took 17 chapters (in this timeline). 
> 
> Sorry for the long wait. I'm doing my best to keep churning out chapters. But rest assured that I will continue working, even if it is slow going. As always, comments are very much appreciated!


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